a false or distorted report or account, used to obtain political advantage
Word origin
C19: after Baron von Roorback, invented author of an imaginary Tour through the Western and Southern States (1844), which contained a passage defaming James K. Polk
roorback in American English
(ˈrʊrˌbæk), ˈroorˌbach (ˈrʊrˌbæk)
US
noun
a false or slanderous story devised for political effect, esp. against a candidate for office
Word origin
after the imaginary author of a nonexistent book, Roorback's Tour, etc. containing spurious charges against candidate Polk