Proof by assertion, sometimes informally referred to as proof by
repeated assertion, is an informal fallacy in which a
proposition is repeatedly restated regardless of contradiction.
Sometimes, this may be repeated until challenges dry up, at
which point it is asserted as fact due to its not being
contradicted (argumentum ad nauseam). In other cases, its
repetition may be cited as evidence of its truth, in a variant
of the appeal to authority or appeal to belief fallacies. This
fallacy is sometimes used as a form of rhetoric by politicians,
or during a debate as a filibuster. In its extreme form, it can
also be a form of brainwashing. Modern politics contains many
examples of proof by assertions. This practice can be observed
in the use of political slogans, and the distribution of
"talking points", which are collections of short phrases that
are issued to members of modern political parties for recitation
to achieve maximum message repetition. The technique is also
sometimes used in advertising. An example i