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  1. Harry S. Truman
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  3. Truman Trivia
  4. Did the term "Political Correctness" originate with Harry Truman's telegram to General Douglas MacArthur?

Did the term "Political Correctness" originate with Harry Truman's telegram to General Douglas MacArthur?

This purported exchange of telegrams between General Douglas MacArthur and President Harry S. Truman does not exist at the Truman Library. One of the ways you can tell this exchange is not accurate is that they have Chester Nimitz's middle initial wrong - his middle initial is W, not H. The "telegrams" contain other terms that did not exist in Truman's time, such as "mainstream media," and terms that military officers of MacArthur's rank would not have used in official communications. It also suggests a level of camaraderie and familiarity between General MacArthur and President Truman that certainly did not exist.