Changes

A '''"Red herring"''' is a [[logical fallacy|fallacy]] in which an irrelevant topic is presented in order to divert attention from the original issue. The basic idea is to "win" an argument by leading attention away from the argument and to another topic.

A '''Red herring''' is anything that turns out to be totally irrelevant to the question at hand. For example, in criminal investigations, detectives (rightly) follow nearly any lead they are given; most turn out to be "red herrings".  The hope is that one will not.  The same is true of scientific investigations.

For example, during an [[election]] campaign, a politician who is weak on the [[economy]] might make a speech attacking a rival on a much more trivial issue, such as a [[political correctness|politically incorrect]] remark he or she may have made some time ago. The hope is that the electorate and the [[media]] will focus attention on the red herring and overlook the campaigner's poor economic record.

Red herrings are sometimes intentionally introduced in a debate (political or otherwise).  Skilled debaters are good at detecting this.  For example, during an [[election]] campaign, a politician who is weak on the [[economy]] might make a speech attacking a rival on a much more trivial issue, such as a [[political correctness|politically incorrect]] remark he or she may have made some time ago. The hope is that the electorate and the [[media]] will focus attention on the red herring and overlook the campaigner's poor economic record.

[[Category: Logical Fallacies]]

[[Category: Idioms]]

[[Category: Liberal Traits]]