Cherry-Picking
Selecting only the evidence that supports your case while ignoring the evidence that doesn't.
Origin
The image is of picking the ripe cherries off a tree and leaving the bad ones — a metaphor that goes back to at least the mid-20th century. Distinct from outright lying: the cited examples are real, just unrepresentative. Closely related to 'selection bias' in statistics and 'curating' in modern social-media vocabulary. The fix is showing the full distribution, not just the favorable points.
Modern usage
Standard accusation in political and scientific argument. 'Cherry-picked stats,' 'cherry-picked quotes,' 'cherry-picked anecdotes.' Anti-vaxxers and climate skeptics are routinely accused of it; so are mainstream-media editors. The phrase is now so common most readers don't picture cherries.
Tags