The Euphemism Trap: When Words Fail Us in Times of Terror The controversy over the CBC's guidance to journalists not to use the word "terror" when writing about 9/11 raises more questions than answers about the role of language in reporting on violence and tragedy.
News organizations want to avoid loaded terms that can manipulate public opinion or stir up emotions, but is this approach justified when describing an event as catastrophic as the September 11 attacks?
The CBC's preference for using "hijackers" instead of "terrorists" and describing the attacks as "plane crashes" rather than terrorist attacks is a telling example of how language can downplay or sanitize the severity of an event.