Newzak

English

Alternative forms

• Newszak

Etymology

Blend of news +‎ Muzak, coined by Malcolm Muggeridge.

Noun

Newzak (uncountable)

1. (derogatory) news reporting aiming to entertain more than to inform
   • 1979, Malcolm Muggeridge, Things past, page 209:

     These pundits intone Newzak like priests each evening, every now and again breaking off for a 'message', this being the consumer aspect of Newzak […]

   • 1985, Architectural Digest, volume 42, page 33:

     […] they go on, mile after mile, with ever more tarmac opening before them, and their radio alternating between Muzak, a melange of tunes, and Newzak, a melange of news items, both geared to counteracting anything in the nature of thought.

   • 2003, Richard Hack, Clash of the titans, page 473:

     The thrust of the news service was unbiased reporting and presenting the complete picture. Critics reported that despite its claims, Fox News had not found a way to reinvent the news. Rather, it merely added to the saturation level. Newzak.

   • 2008, John Simpson, Not Quite World's End, page 421:

     The recording must exist somewhere in the vast archives of the BBC, but it wasn't particularly enlightening as far as Mugabe's negotiating position was concerned, and the report I based on it was one of those Newzak pieces […]