---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You don't need the right facts if you…"
description: "\"You don't need the right facts if you have the right inflection.\" — Stephen Colbert"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png"
---

#  You don't need the right facts if you have the right…

![“You don't need the right facts if you have the right inflection.” quote by Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png)

> “You don't need the right facts if you have the right inflection.”

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Delivery can outweigh factual accuracy in persuasion.

**In simple terms:** How you say it matters more than facts.

Key Takeaway

Focus on tone for influence.

Themes

communication persuasion media

Mood

witty critical

Type

media rhetorical

When to use this quote

- political speeches
- advertising
- debates

Key Concepts

rhetoric psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- When is style more important than truth?
- How to balance facts and delivery?

A Different Perspective

Misleading tone can spread misinformation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/)

## Related quotes

> [You're neither right nor wrong because other people agree with you. You're right because your facts are right and your reasoning is right -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/you-re-neither-right-nor-wrong-because-other-people-agree-with-you/)

[Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/)

> [Affery, like greater people, had always been right in her facts, and always wrong in the theories she deduced from them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/affery-like-greater-people-had-always-been-right-in-her-facts-and/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Whatever my current beliefs are, on any topic, they're all open to being changed by the right facts and the right evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramez-naam/whatever-my-current-beliefs-are-on-any-topic-they-re-all-open-to/)

[Ramez Naam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramez-naam/)

> [There's always a responsibility as a pundit, whether you're male or female: the way you present yourself, making sure you've got your facts right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-scott/there-s-always-a-responsibility-as-a-pundit-whether-you-re-male-or/)

[Alex Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-scott/)

> [What is really needed to make democracy function is not knowledge of facts, but right education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/what-is-really-needed-to-make-democracy-function-is-not-knowledge-of/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [If you get all the facts, your judgment can be right; if you don't get all the facts, it can't be right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-baruch/if-you-get-all-the-facts-your-judgment-can-be-right-if-you-don-t-get/)

[Bernard Baruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-baruch/)

> [10 facts about you right now...1. your reading this right now, 2. your realising this is pointless...4. you didnt notice I skipped three…5. your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamika-leeigh/10-facts-about-you-right-now-1-your-reading-this-right-now-2-your/)

[Tamika-leeigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamika-leeigh/)

> [When it comes to snowing people, one effective technique is to get a whole bunch of verifiable facts right and then add one or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/when-it-comes-to-snowing-people-one-effective-technique-is-to-get-a/)

[Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/)

> [“Get the facts, or the facts will get you. And when you get them, get them right, or they will get you wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-fuller/get-the-facts-or-the-facts-will-get-you-and-when-you-get-them-get/)

[Thomas Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-fuller/)

> [In my own life, I have noticed when I have been meeting directors, that the same sentence with the same inflection can be said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/in-my-own-life-i-have-noticed-when-i-have-been-meeting-directors-that/)

[Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/)

> [“Every inflection and every gesture a lie, every smile a grimace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingmar-bergman/every-inflection-and-every-gesture-a-lie-every-smile-a-grimace/)

[Ingmar Bergman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingmar-bergman/)

> [In the 1960s, there was a forward way of speaking and inflection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/in-the-1960s-there-was-a-forward-way-of-speaking-and-inflection/)

[Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/)

> [I had a tendency to over enunciate, so I think at times some of my English is part that and part inflection. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorit-kemsley/i-had-a-tendency-to-over-enunciate-so-i-think-at-times-some-of-my/)

[Dorit Kemsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorit-kemsley/)

> [In conversation you can use timing, a look, an inflection. But on the page all you have is commas, dashes, the amount of syllables…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-lebowitz/in-conversation-you-can-use-timing-a-look-an-inflection-but-on-the/)

[Fran Lebowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-lebowitz/)

> [“When people in the company start asking questions like @But how can we say "X" when we do "Y"? more than anything else this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-s-grove/when-people-in-the-company-start-asking-questions-like-but-how-can-we/)

[Andrew S. Grove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-s-grove/)

## More by Stephen Colbert

> [Don't be bitter. Everybody suffers. If you can accept your suffering then you will understand other people better. Be grateful for pain. Love life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/don-t-be-bitter-everybody-suffers-if-you-can-accept-your-suffering/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [We all deserve credit for this new surveillance state that we live in because we the people voted for the Patriot Act. Democrats and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/we-all-deserve-credit-for-this-new-surveillance-state-that-we-live-in/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [I've long been against illegal aliens, partly because they distract us from an even bigger threat: real aliens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-ve-long-been-against-illegal-aliens-partly-because-they-distract-us/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Believe in me, cause I don't believe in anything, and I wanna be someone to believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/believe-in-me-cause-i-don-t-believe-in-anything-and-i-wanna-be/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [It's August, which means Congress is on recess and Mitch McConnell has shimmied back into the ocean to seek a mate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/it-s-august-which-means-congress-is-on-recess-and-mitch-mcconnell-has/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Try to love others and serve others and hopefully find those who love and serve you in return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/try-to-love-others-and-serve-others-and-hopefully-find-those-who-love/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Thirty seconds is the exact amount of time Americans can tolerate something they don't understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/thirty-seconds-is-the-exact-amount-of-time-americans-can-tolerate/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [I used to make up stuff in my bio all the time, that I used to be a professional ice-skater and stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-used-to-make-up-stuff-in-my-bio-all-the-time-that-i-used-to-be-a/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [I live by syllogisms: God is love. Love is blind. Stevie Wonder is blind. Therefore, Stevie Wonder is God. I don't know what I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-live-by-syllogisms-god-is-love-love-is-blind-stevie-wonder-is-blind/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [“Unlike Paul Newman, who seems to think that salad dressing is the cure-all for America's ills, I'm a man of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/unlike-paul-newman-who-seems-to-think-that-salad-dressing-is-the-cure/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Now, for my younger viewers out there, a book is something we used to have before the internet. It’s sort of a blog for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/now-for-my-younger-viewers-out-there-a-book-is-something-we-used-to/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Jesus forgives sinners, not criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/jesus-forgives-sinners-not-criminals/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [Used books are the sluts of the literary world. Passed around from person to person, spreading their pages for anyone, getting cheaper and cheaper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/used-books-are-the-sluts-of-the-literary-world-passed-around-from/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

> [“Divorce is a marital welfare. It's just couples asking society to bail them out because they didn't do enough research before they got married.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/divorce-is-a-marital-welfare-it-s-just-couples-asking-society-to-bail/)

[Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

[Explore all 514 Stephen Colbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/)

## More Facts quotes

> [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/)

[Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/)

> [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/)

[Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/)

> [He bombarded me with words, of all things, apparently clueless to the fact that the predawn hours rendered me incapable of coherent thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/he-bombarded-me-with-words-of-all-things-apparently-clueless-to-the/)

[Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/)

[Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/)

> [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/)

[Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/)

> [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/)

[Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/)

> [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/)

[Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/)

> [Because the truth is that gossip is as good as gospel in this town. You can save face but you won't ever save your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/because-the-truth-is-that-gossip-is-as-good-as-gospel-in-this-town/)

[Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/)

> [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/)

C-DASH

> [We did an episode where she goes out to get a job and she gets fired because she's not good. They hire a babysitter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-heaton/we-did-an-episode-where-she-goes-out-to-get-a-job-and-she-gets-fired/)

[Patricia Heaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-heaton/)

> [Le biologiste passe, la grenouille reste. The biologist passes, the frog remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/le-biologiste-passe-la-grenouille-reste-the-biologist-passes-the-frog/)

[Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/)

> [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/)

[Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/)

> [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/)

[George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/)

[Browse all 19,906 Facts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "You don't need the right facts if you have the right inflection.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Stephen Colbert"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-have-the-right-inflection/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Facts"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-have-the-right-inflection/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce9/stephen-colbert-503_facts_you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-ha_2875787.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“You don't need the right facts if you have the right inflection.” — Stephen Colbert",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Stephen Colbert",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "You don't need the right facts...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-have-the-right-inflection/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/you-don-t-need-the-right-facts-if-you-have-the-right-inflection/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
