![]() Avoid answering a difficult question head-on, especially when people feel cornered or pressured to defend themselves.Confuse people by introducing a vague statement, causing them to forget the original topic.Reroute a discussion by steering it onto a highly controversial topic that is likely to attract people’s attention.In general, people use a red herring fallacy to distract from the discussion. More specifically, it is a fallacy of relevance: it concerns arguments or statements that seem relevant although they are not. The red herring fallacy is an informal fallacy. They are categorized according to their logical structure as formal fallacies (like ecological fallacy) or their content as informal fallacies. ![]() Although they are not logically sound, they appear solid at first and therefore can easily go unnoticed.įallacies may be committed intentionally to persuade and deceive others, or unintentionally, for several reasons, such as ignorance or language barriers. Fallacies can be either illegitimate arguments or irrelevant points, and they can be identified because they lack evidence that supports their claim. Logical fallacies are common errors in reasoning that render an argument logically invalid. ![]() Instead of answering the question, they may start talking about some unrelated topic to distract their audience. For example, politicians often use it as a diversion tactic to evade difficult questions asked in public. Sometimes, a red herring is used as a rhetorical strategy to persuade others, or even used accidentally in argumentation, in which case we call it a red herring fallacy. In this case, the red herring is used as a literary device to send the reader down the wrong path, creating a plot twist and delivering a surprise ending. Mystery novels, for instance, often feature a character who draws the reader’s attention as a potential suspect but is ultimately proven innocent. Red herring refers to the piece of information that is used as a diversion. Frequently asked questions about the red herring fallacyĪ red herring fallacy is a form of logical fallacy or reasoning error that occurs when a misleading argument or question is presented to distract from the main issue or argument at hand.How to respond to a red herring fallacy.Why do people use a red herring fallacy?.However, when questioned regarding the incident, the production company claims that companies X and Y too have a history of producing and distributing defective products therefore, the mistake is not quite as bad as it would be otherwise. One example: A business customer complains that a particular production company provided them with substandard products. It may also appear in the business context. The tactic is frequently employed to counter criticism at the nation level: If a certain nation finds itself as a target of criticism, say, for violating human rights, they may note that the opposing side has practiced slavery in the past, and therefore is not entitled to criticize other nations. For instance, if a politician is caught off-guard lying, they may use a “what about him?”- ploy to divert the focus to someone else by reminding that he has lied about something even more serious. A president of one country may plainly refuse to take actions to mitigate climate change in his country because some other countries are not doing it either.Īlso, as in many other domains of high competition, it’s a popular tactic in the political arena to bring the mistakes of one’s opponents to the surface whenever faced with accusations. Politicians and state leaders use whataboutism to defend themselves from accusations of not solving certain problems by bringing up the existence of other problems or the shortcomings of other individuals and nations.įor example, we know that climate change is a global issue that requires international intervention. This can seem to them as a reasonable refuge, even though it doesn’t do anything to justify their behavior. ![]() This is, perhaps, because we human beings tend to compare ourselves to other people in our surroundings if another person has committed the same offense it may, in some cases, appear as less unacceptable.Īs an example, if a student gets caught cheating on an exam, their first course of action may be to point out that their fellow student also cheated. Whataboutism is a commonplace technique to justify or belittle one’s mistakes and wrongdoings. As such, here are various examples along with explanations to better illustrate it. This error in reasoning occurs in a wide variety of situations, from our everyday arguments with family members to quarrels between nations. ![]()
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