whispering campaign

American  

noun

1. the organized spreading of insinuations or rumors to destroy the reputation of a person, organization, etc.

---

whispering campaign British  

noun

1. the organized diffusion by word of mouth of defamatory rumours designed to discredit a person, group, etc

---

whispering campaign Idioms  

1. A deliberate spreading of derogatory rumors about a candidate, as in That whispering campaign destroyed his chances for election. [c. 1920]

---

Etymology

Origin of whispering campaign

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

whispering campaign

Schweich, who was Christian but had Jewish ancestry, also had expressed angst to friends over what he perceived to be an anti-Semitic whispering campaign.

From Washington Times ● Mar. 23, 2015

David Garth, Koch’s media guru, needed to defuse the whispering campaign, and Bess and Ed were friends.

From New York Times ● Jan. 9, 2015

Regardless, China completed a sweep of all five badminton golds, but the treatment of the women, and a whispering campaign about doping against swimming sensation Ye Shiwen angered the Chinese.

From Reuters ● Aug. 13, 2012

There will always be a whispering campaign but if you look at John and what he has done in the job, he has introduced a lot of urgent questions.

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2011

When Sattrajit hears that his brother is missing, he concludes that Krishna has caused his death and starts a whispering campaign, accusing Krishna of making away with the jewel.

From The Loves of Krishna in Indian Painting and Poetry by W. G. Archer