What a Wonderful Word

Micro-influencer: Trust Over Fame
Word of the weekMicro-influencer: Trust Over Fame

In the ever-evolving landscape of social media, a new type of influencer has emerged: not the celebrity with millions of followers, but the relatable figure with a smaller, more engaged audience: the “micro-influencer.” The rise of this term says a lot about how influence is being redefined in the digital age. What Does “Micro-influencer” ...

'Crisis:' A Word for Everything?
Word of the week'Crisis:' A Word for Everything?

Debt crisis, economic crisis, crisis of confidence in currencies: these expressions now dominate official discourse. Crises seem to multiply endlessly, from climate to democracy, from housing to public health. “Crisis” has become the keyword of our times. But what are we really saying? If everything is a crisis, does anything truly stand ...

Slop: The Digital Waste Flooding Our Feeds
Word of the weekSlop: The Digital Waste Flooding Our Feeds

As generative artificial intelligence (AI) surges, a new term is gaining traction: slop. No longer just a word for literal mud or lukewarm food, in digital lingo it now refers to a rising wave of unwanted, AI-generated content, vacantly produced, algorithmically amplified, and clogging up social media. From Messy Mud to Messy Media In ...

'Peace:' A Word of War?
Word of the week'Peace:' A Word of War?

Since returning to power in January 2025, President Donald Trump has multiplied his promises of peace: an end to the war in Ukraine “within 24 hours,” a global deal in the Middle East, including Gaza. But when Trump speaks of peace, he taps into a long rhetorical tradition where peace often rhymes with order, or even submission. Behind this ...