Afactoid is either a false statement presented as a fact,[1][2] or a true but brief ortrivial item of news or information.
The term was coined in 1973 by American writerNorman Mailer to mean a piece of information that becomes accepted as a fact even though it is not actually true, or an invented fact believed to be true because it appears in print.[3] Since the term's invention in 1973, it has become used to describe a brief or trivial item of news or information.
The term wascoined by American writerNorman Mailer in his 1973 biography ofMarilyn Monroe.[4] Mailer described factoids as "facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper",[5] and formed the word by combining the wordfact and the ending-oid to mean "similar but not the same".The Washington Times described Mailer's new word as referring to "something that looks like a fact, could be a fact, but in fact is not a fact".[6]
Accordingly, factoids may give rise to, or arise from,common misconceptions andurban legends. Several decades after the term was coined by Mailer, it came to have several meanings, some of which are quite distinct from each other.[7] In 1993,William Safire identified several contrasting senses offactoid:
"factoid: accusatory: misinformation purporting to be factual; or, a phony statistic."[7]
"factoid: neutral: seemingly though not necessarily factual"[7]
"factoid: (the CNN version): a little-known bit of information; trivial but interesting data."[7]
This new sense of a factoid as a trivial but interesting fact was popularized by theCNN Headline News TV channel, which, during the 1980s and 1990s, often included such a fact under the heading "factoid" during newscasts.BBC Radio 2 presenterSteve Wright used factoids extensively on his show.[8]
As a result of confusion over the meaning of factoid, some English-language style and usage guides discourage its use.[9]William Safire in his "On Language" column advocated the use of the wordfactlet instead offactoid to express a brief interesting fact as well as a "little bit of arcana" but did not explain how adopting this new term would alleviate the ongoing confusion over the existing contradictory common use meanings offactoid.[10]
Safire suggested thatfactlet be used to designate a small or trivial bit of information that is nonetheless true or accurate.[7][10] A report inThe Guardian identified Safire as the writer who coined the termfactlet,[4] although Safire's 1993 column suggestedfactlet was already in use at that time.[7]The Atlantic magazine agreed with Safire and recommendedfactlet to signify a "small probably unimportant but interesting fact", asfactoid still connoted a spurious fact.[11] The termfactlet has been used in publications such asMother Jones,[12] theSan Jose Mercury News,[13] and in theReno Gazette Journal.[14]
^Madrigal, Alexis C. (March 29, 2012)."Down With Factoid! Up With Factlet!".The Atlantic. Accessed June 9, 2014. "Factoid is now almost exclusively used to mean a brief interesting fact ... ought instead to use another word for a small probably unimportant but interesting fact".
^Burrell, Jackie (May 19, 2014)."Amazing Race All-Star Winners: And the winner is (spoiler!!)".The San Jose Mercury News. Accessed June 9, 2014. "Brendan has promised his bride that if they win the million bucks, she can have a baby, afactlet that keeps coming up in the most manipulative and unsavory ways". (italics added)
^Wright, Johnathan L. (May 26, 2014)."In One Ear: Cherchez the sparkle at jewelry fundraiser; Cakebread dinner".Reno Gazette Journal. Accessed June 9, 2014. "The chardonnay made its entrance next on the arm of rabbit loin wrapped in serrano ham (little foodfactlet for you: serrano ham couldn't be imported to the United States until 1997, when the pigs used in the ham were certified as free from African swine disease)". (italics added)
