GLOSSARY

Loaded Words

Short answer: Headline words that carry an emotional or political charge beyond their literal meaning.

Loaded words are verbs and labels that aren't strictly inaccurate but carry framing that shapes the reader's first impression: "slammed" instead of "criticized," "bombshell" instead of "report," "raid" instead of "operation," "denier" instead of "whistleblower." Optics News catalogs the recurring loaded words in news framing at /words and shows live headlines using each.

See also

• Framing
• Wording Gap

See the full Optics News glossary, the methodology page, or browse live framing gaps.