What is red herring? | Definition from TechTarget (2024)

FAQs

What is red herring? | Definition from TechTarget? ›

A red herring is a logical fallacy in which irrelevant information is presented alongside relevant information, distracting attention from that relevant information.

A red herring is used by introducing an irrelevant piece of information that distracts the reader or listener. This can be intentional or unintentional. As a result, one can divert others' attention away from the original discussion topic or avoid answering a difficult question.

A red herring uses misleading information to redirect away from the original topic. Often, people use red herrings unintentionally, but these logical fallacies may also be used intentionally to distract from the main topic of an argument.

This fallacy consists in diverting attention from the real issue by focusing instead on an issue having only a surface relevance to the first.

something intended to divert attention from the real problem or matter at hand; a misleading clue.

For example, an argument against raising salaries might go something like this: "We can't raise salaries, but we still provide great benefits for our employees." This argument is a red herring because the mention of employee benefits distracts from the real point, that salaries will not be raised.

A red herring is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important question. It may be either a logical fallacy or a literary device that leads readers or audiences toward a false conclusion.

Examples of red herring in a Sentence

The argument is a red herring. It actually has nothing to do with the issue. The plot of the mystery was full of red herrings.

False leads started to become known as “Red Herrings” in the early 1800s when an English journalist named William Cobbett used the term to compare the media's premature reporting of Napoleon's defeat to the practice of using smelly fish to distract hound dogs from chasing rabbits.

red herring (noun as in misleading clue) Strongest matches. ploy smokescreen. Weak matches. attention-grabber bait commotion curve ball deviation distraction distractor disturbance diversion diversionary tactic false clue false face false trail fool's errand gimmick interruption maneuver wild-goose chase.

How do you respond to a red herring? ›

To respond to a red herring, you can ask the person who used it to justify it, point it out yourself and explain why it's fallacious, redirect the conversation back to the original line of discussion, accept it and move on, or disengage from the discussion entirely.

A red herring fallacy refers to an attempt to change the subject and divert attention from the original issue. In other words, a seemingly solid but ultimately irrelevant argument is introduced into the discussion, either on purpose or by mistake.

A red herring is a misleading statement, question, or argument meant to redirect a conversation away from its original topic.

Although a red herring may have some kernel of truth, it is used as a distraction to keep our eyes on a different matter. As a result, it can cause us to accept and spread misleading information.

Red Herring. A red herring is the introduction of an irrelevant or random point into an argument mean to change the subject. Ad-hominem. In an argument, this is an attack on the person rather than on the opponent's ideas. It comes from the Latin meaning "turn to the man."

A red herring prospectus is a preliminary document that includes most of the company's important details but excludes particular specifics such as the IPO price and the number of shares offered for sale.