Guilt by Association

Guilt by Association is a term which describes the act of attempting to discredit person because of his connection to a certain group or organization. Guilt by association is sometimes referred to as collective guilt, the act of a member of an organization being held responsible for the actions of the group or other group members.

United States Congressman Joseph McCarthy was accused of using this tactic in his search to identify individuals of Communist Party. Later liberals fabricated the term McCarthyism to describe his tactics. Guilt by association is still used by groups today to discredit their opponents. For example, some individuals have been smeared by Wikipedian editors, by associating those individuals with the John Birch Society.

See Also

• Bias in Wikipedia