smear campaign

noun

1. a campaign to tarnish the reputation of a public figure, especially by vilification or innuendo.

Idioms and Phrases

An attempt to ruin a reputation by slander or vilification, as in This press agent is well known for starting smear campaigns against her clients' major competitors. This phrase was first recorded in 1938 and uses smear in the sense of “an attempt to discredit” or “slander.”

Example Sentences

The 71-year-old Slovak-born politician has denied any wrongdoing, calling the allegations a smear campaign.

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Presidential Pep Secretary Karoline Leavitt publicly identified the victim as the late Virginia Giuffre and accused Democrats of a politically motivated smear campaign.

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The FPOe, founded by former Nazis, dismissed the criticism as a "smear campaign", saying Dinghofer was a "victim of the Nazi regime".

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Lawyers for the reservists argued in the news conference that their clients were the victims of a smear campaign orchestrated by Tomer-Yerushalmi.

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Blake Lively is seeking more than $161 million in damages from an alleged smear campaign involving “It Ends With Us” co-star Justin Baldoni, including lost acting jobs and financial blows to her alcohol and hair-care brands.

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