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I saw the word, “celebvocate” in “Editor’s Pick” section in today’s (July 14) Washington Post which comes under the caption, “When ‘celebvocates’ come to D.C.” and followed by the lead copy:

“Here are a few of the recent visitors seeking to leverage their fame with Congress or the president."

I also saw quite a lot of “celebvocates” in the clips in Google Search, for an example:

Thursday's celebvocate: NFL linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo Occasion: Announcing his upcoming role as guest editor ... Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation this morning to talk about Jason Collins' coming out and what it means for the future of ...”

I understand “celebvocate” is simply a compound of ‘Celebrity’ and “advocate.” However, Google Ngram shows no incidence of “celebvocates” on its record, and Spellchecker keeps demanding correction of this word, when I’m making proof-check of this post now.

Is “celebvocate” gaining popularity to be perceived as an acceptable word? It seems the word being used predominantly by Washigton Post, which I think is one of influential media in U.S. When did it come into currency?

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    Never heard of such a thing in my life.
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Jul 13, 2013 at 23:39
  • 7
    Looks like a portmanteau coined by the writer or the writer's clique. For what it's worth, this is a particularly ugly coinage, and feels very forced.
    – Robusto
    Commented Jul 14, 2013 at 0:00
  • Jeez, I hope this doesn't catch on. Last good portmanteau word was "brunch".
    – Michael Lorton
    Commented Sep 20, 2016 at 20:41
  • "Is 'celebvocate' gaining currency in English, and if so, how do we stop it?"
    – Doug Warren
    Commented Sep 20, 2016 at 21:04

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Washington Post: The List: what’s out, what’s in as 2011 dawns

Out Celebvocacy In Pundraising

Looks like the word goes back to 2009 at the Washington Post Other than there, the term doesn't appear to have caught fire at all.

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