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The chattering classes is a politically active, socially concerned and highly educated section of the "metropolitan middle class ", ^[1] especially those with political, media, and academic connections. It is a generally derogatory term, ^[1] often used by pundits and political commentators.

United Kingdom [ edit ]

It is sometimes used to refer to a liberal elite , but its first use by British journalist Frank Johnson in 1980 appeared to include a wider range of pundits. ^[1] Indeed, the term is used by people all across the political spectrum to refer to the journalists and political operatives who see themselves as the arbiters of conventional wisdom . ^[2] As such, the notion of "chattering classes" can be seen as an antonym to the older idea of an unrepresented silent majority , made notable by the U.S. Republican Party President Richard Nixon .

United States [ edit ]

In the United States , the term has come to be used by both the left and right and to describe political opponents, with Stephen Perrault of the Merriam-Webster dictionary suggesting that the term has "connotations of idleness, of useless talk, that the noun 'chatter' does. ... These people don't amount to much?they like to hear themselves talk." ^[3]

See also [ edit ]

• Intelligentsia
• Thought leader

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

• BBC wordhunt entry
• The Guardian: How the chattering classes turned to talk
• The Chattering Classes

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