show trial

American  

noun

1. (especially in a totalitarian state) the public trial of a political offender conducted chiefly for propagandistic purposes, as to suppress further dissent against the government by making an example of the accused.

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show trial British  

noun

1. a trial conducted primarily to make a particular impression on the public or on other nations, esp one that demonstrates the power of the state over the individual

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Etymology

Origin of show trial

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Hours later, Fox said that he had "completed my show trial... I mean disciplinary hearing" - a reference to the investigation launched by the channel into his comments.

From BBC • Sep. 29, 2023

Earlier that year, his Khmer Rouge contacts had taken him to witness an outdoor show trial in which Pol Pot, the movement’s founder, was denounced by comrades.

From New York Times • Jan. 6, 2023

“I think it’s going to be a little bit of a show trial for him,” said Weinstein, now a criminal defense lawyer in New Jersey.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 1, 2022

At a show trial he was sentenced to prison for a nonexistent parole violation.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 27, 2021

Nobody, though, escapes the Inquisition, and once a full show trial had begun, the only conceivable verdict was to find Galileo guilty of something and punish him as a warning to others.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin