Definition

1. Noun:
   • Hack writer, hack publicist: A person who writes texts, articles, or propaganda material, often of low quality, for hire, typically to serve the interests of a particular individual, organization, or regime. The term carries a strong negative connotation of being unprincipled and mercenary.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Anh ta bị cộng đồng mạng lên án là một tên bồi bút. (He was condemned by the online community as a hack writer.)
  • Tờ báo đó thuê bồi bút để viết bài ca ngợi chính sách mới. (That newspaper hired hack writers to write articles praising the new policy.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "bồi bút" is inherently pejorative and is used in political or social criticism. It implies a lack of journalistic integrity or intellectual honesty, suggesting the writer is a paid propagandist.

Variants and Related Words

• Viết thuê (v): To write for hire. This is a more neutral phrase for freelance writing, but can contextually imply similar mercenary work.
• Văn nô (n): A literary lackey; a strongly derogatory term similar to "bồi bút," emphasizing servitude to a master.

Synonyms

• Hack: A writer hired to produce routine or commercial work, often implying mediocre quality.
• Propagandist: A person who promotes or publicizes a particular cause or point of view, often in a biased way.

Related Phrases

• Làm bồi bút: To work as a hack writer.
  • Hắn từ chối làm bồi bút cho chế độ đó. (He refused to work as a hack writer for that regime.)

Related Idioms

• While there is no direct idiom containing "bồi bút", the concept is related to the idea of "bán chữ" (to sell words/one's writing), which carries a negative connotation of compromising one's principles for money.

noun

1. Hack writer, hack publicist