Smoke screen or smoke screen is an expression that is used when you want to cover one fact with another; in other words, it is a figure, a metaphor. It is commonly used in the media and politics, although it originated on battlefields.
The first time the term smoke screen was used was in the military sphere, something that was carried out by burning straw using fire and as a tactic to obstruct the enemy's vision.
Source Pixabay.com
Its effectiveness on land was so good that it was also used at sea, the first time something like this was seen during the American Civil War, in 1862.
However, its use was stronger and more evident was during the First World War (1914-18), when tanks or war chariots entered the scene for the first time, which were preceded by a thick smoke screen that camouflaged them. and allowed to surprise the rival.
While it may be believed that the darker the smokescreen, the more effective it will be, the battlefield proved that it is not. It was the Germans who introduced a novel light-colored screen that was more durable and blends better with the sky. It was obtained after mixing chlorosulfonic acid and sulfuric anhydride.
Source Pixabay.com
Meaning
Currently, the term smokescreen refers to a distraction generated by a person, company or government to remove the focus of attention from public opinion and move it elsewhere.
There is a very similar term and it is "sell smoke." It is similar and refers to the person who overacts or exaggerates attitudes to imply something that he is not.
Usage examples
In politics
There is an American film whose name into Spanish was translated as "Smoke Curtain" (directed by Barry Levinson) that perfectly exemplifies the term.
In it, the President of the United States is accused of sexual abuse of a woman in the middle of the White House and on the days of the elections to renew his mandate. In order to divert the attention of public opinion and the electorate, they decide to invent a war against Albania, which never existed, but which undoubtedly moved the population.
Another clear example is to say that "The 1978 Soccer World Cup in Argentina was a smokescreen to the world by the ruling Military Dictatorship to cover up the atrocities they committed against the human rights of their opponents."
In marketing
The example of the mentioned film is taken by experts in marketing and communication as a case in "crisis management", that is, of how to reverse a bad image or an event so that people forget it as quickly as possible.
The smokescreen effect represents the desire and willingness to impress others. This curtain is a maneuver that produces "a lot of smoke" but has "little fire". However, the deterrent effect that is achieved through actual adaptation of the desired object associations does produce a persuasive and intimidating fire.
In the media
In some journalistic companies, news of another caliber, tint, theme or in a biased way is usually given in order not to disclose or give repercussion to events of governments or people related to the medium to preserve their image, whether for family, economic or social interests. power.
An example may be that a newspaper cover dedicates more space to a colored or secondary note than to the scandal that a politician may have starred in.
Today, digital media suffer from the presence of so-called "fake news" or "false news", which could well be defined as smoke screens.
In them, a statistical data, a textual phrase or a false fact of a public figure is taken for granted in order to destroy their reputation. Rumor manipulation to generate news is also common.
In the naval force
At present, and in the face of the sophisticated radar systems and heat sensors that missiles have, warships generate large smoke screens that not only make them invisible to the common eye, but also to thermally guided missiles.
References
- Mood curtain. (2018). Smoke screen: from World War I to present-day Russia. Recovered from: sputniknews.com
- Daniel Piestrak (1990). "The seven key factors of strategic marketing: the competitive battle". Retrieved from: books.google.bg
- Niceto Blázques (2000). "The ethical challenge of information". Recovered from: books.google.bg
- IM Datz (2004). "Military Operations: Under Special Conditions of Terrain and Weather." Recovered from: books.google.bg
- Frank Jefkins (1990). "Modern Marketing Communications". Recovered from: books.google.bg