1. a conspiracy theory or political movement that questions or denies the birthplace or citizenship of a political figure, particularly used to refer to claims that a U.S. president was not born in the country
Usage: informal; often pejorative; primarily used in political discourse

Examples

• Birtherism gained prominence during the 2008 presidential campaign.
• Many fact-checkers have thoroughly debunked the claims of birtherism.
• The spread of birtherism on social media demonstrated how misinformation can persist despite official documentation.
• Political analysts attributed some of the birtherism movement to partisan polarization.
• Historians have documented how birtherism affected public discourse and trust in institutions.