In the United States today, we have more than our share of the nattering nabobs of negativism.

Spiro T. Agnew, Richard Nixon’s vice president, used this phrase in a nationally prominent 1969 speech attacking what the administration viewed as an adversarial press and political commentators. The line became emblematic of the Nixon-era strategy of rallying “silent majority” supporters by portraying elite media voices as reflexively critical and out of touch with ordinary Americans. The speech was part of a broader White House communications effort to push back against negative coverage of the Vietnam War and domestic unrest, and it helped cement Agnew’s public role as the administration’s blunt, combative spokesman against media “negativism.”

The phrase is a pointed piece of alliterative rhetoric: “nattering” suggests incessant, trivial talk, while “nabobs” (wealthy, self-important figures) implies privileged elites. By labeling critics “nabobs of negativism,” Agnew frames dissenting commentary not as substantive scrutiny but as snobbish, habitual pessimism. The line functions politically to delegitimize criticism—especially from journalists and intellectuals—by casting it as performative and socially detached. Its staying power comes from its memorable sound and its encapsulation of a recurring American political move: turning critique of government into a critique of the critic’s motives and social position.

“nattering nabobs of negativism”
“the nattering nabobs of negativism”
“nattering nabobs of negativism in the press”