Letters to the Editor
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Why do the media use the word "misstatements"?
I think it's possible to misstate a fact or a misspeak, in the sense that you meant to tell the truth but you slipped up. Like, saying "red" if you mean "blue" just because red happened to be in your mind.
I also can understand that CANDIDATES might misuse the word misstate when they falsely state facts.
But why do the MEDIA use the term misstate or misspoke when politicians speak falsely, particularly after they admit to speaking falsely. That's a corruption of the language. Maybe Clinton misremembered, or more likely, she lied, but she spoke falsely. She did not misstate or misspeak.