Evasion
Red herring
Drags in a different topic to pull the debate off course.
“Before we talk about homework, let's talk about how much teachers are paid.”
- How to spot it
- An interesting point that has nothing to do with the question on the table.
- How to answer it
- Acknowledge it in a sentence, then bring the debate back: “Back to the question…”
Practise against it
Favoured by The Spin Doctor.