sensationalism

English

Etymology

From sensational +‎ -ism.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

sensationalism (countable and uncountable, plural sensationalisms)

1. The use of sensational subject matter, style or methods, or the sensational subject matter itself; behavior, published materials, or broadcasts that are intentionally controversial, exaggerated, lurid, loud, or attention-grabbing. Especially applied to news media in a pejorative sense that they are reporting in a manner to gain audience or notoriety but at the expense of accuracy and professionalism.
   • 2018, James Lambert, “A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity”, in English World-Wide‎^[1], page 9:

     Newspaper articles also were generally positive in tone, although a tendency towards sensationalism means that the spread of hybrid forms is occasionally touted as the universal language of the future.

2. (philosophy) A theory of philosophy that all knowledge is ultimately derived from the senses.

Synonyms

• (epistemic doctrine): sensualism

Antonyms

• antisensationalism

Translations

use of style and subject matter that is intentionally controversial, lurid, or attention-grabbing

• Catalan: sensacionalisme m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 炒作 (zh) (chǎozuò)

• Dutch: sensationalisme n, sensatiezucht (nl) c
• Finnish: sensaationtavoittelu
• French: sensationnalisme (fr) m
• Georgian: სენსაციონალიზმი (sensacionalizmi)
• German: Sensationsmache f
• Irish: gáifeachas m, scailéathan m, táblóideachas m
• Manx: ard-haghyrtys m
• Russian: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: sensacionalismo (es) m
• Thai: please add this translation if you can

philosophy

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 感覺主義 / 感觉主义 (gǎnjuézhǔyì)

• Finnish: sensationalismi, aistikeskeisyys
• Irish: céadfaíochas m

Further reading

• “sensationalism”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “sensationalism”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “sensationalism”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• Sensationalism in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)