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Rumors on the rise

in U.S., professor says

Plain Dealer Special

The

BOWLING GREEN, O. spreading of rumors is increasing in American Society, according to a professor here.

"Frankly, I don't think anyone can escape them," said Dr. Raymomd K. Tucker, a speech communication professor at Bowling Green State University.

He pointed out nearly everyone will be the victim of a rumor during his or her lifetime.

In every rumor there is a kernel of truth, but that element is exaggerated and distorted. "Most of us," Tucker said, "are selective about what we see and hear so it's easy to get a distorted view."

He attributes the increase in rumors in part to broadening distrust, particularly of public officials, which has resulted from Watergate and other recent investigations. When hidden evidence comes to light, it creates a fertile. environment for rumors, he said.

"The amount of illegal activity uncovered has spurred people to be more suspicious. Whenever you find people have lied like Nixon you are more prone to believe rumors about others.

"It's a snowballing effect," he continued. "If you start being suspicious of your neighbor, you are more likely to believe there is evidence to back up rumors and pass these rumors on."

Communications experts have identified at least three types of

rumors.

The "bogeyman" rumor, Tucker said, is one that predicts evil will befall those who take a certain action.

"There may be a rumor in New York, for instance, that says you can't open a pizza shop unless you pay off the Mafia. If you don't pay off the Mafia, your shop will be bombed."

Then there are "wish-fulfilling" rumors which are about events people wish would take place. Tucker cited rumors during the 1960s about the United States winning the Vietnam War as an example.

Another type is the destructive rumor created with malice.

During the presidential campaign, Tucker said there was an attempt to link President Ford to Nixon through a whispering campaign that alleged Ford had tried to suppress the Watergate investigation. The

idea, he explained, was to discredit Ford's trustworthiness.

As another example, he cited a rumor that President Franklin D. Roosevelt was a homosexual, which, although untrue, circulated widely a few decades ago.

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"These whispering campaigns go across the country quickly and can be highly effective. One of the greatest problems is what to do about them.

"It's impossible to track down who's saying what," Tucker pointed out. "Once a major rumor is tagged on you, you must live with it the rest of your life."

Denying a rumor only adds fuel to the rumor mill and, Tucker said, "if you tried to sue, you probably wouldn't win because of the difficulty in proving malice."

People may steadfastly deny that they promote rumors, but they do, he said.

"People don't want to be the first to leave a party in fear that others will talk about them when they're gone. There was even a song, 'Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone,' he said, adding that rumors about you almost never are told in your presence.

Not everyone is taken in by all rumors. Those who have some knowledge of the subject are more critical of what is being said. They may either reject the rumor outright or investigate its truth before repeating it, Tucker said.

Then there are "hundreds of thousands" of persons who simply transmit rumors. These people couldn't care less if the rumors are true, the professor said, noting that children often fall into this category.

A third group of people who repeat rumors are called the "uncritical set" by communications experts. These people are not critical of rumors because they have no basis for disagreeing with them and no motivation for checking them out," Tucker said.

"The most problems are with those who aren't critical because they tend to believe everything they hear. They don't think about whether or not it will harm someone."

Rumors tend to be negative, rather than positive, because negative statements are more interesting, the professor said.

Rumors persist because passing them is a game of oneupmanship.