Candid: From the Law Firm of Frank & Earnest
An entry in the Unknowable Truth Glossary.
When a photographer captures an image of a subject unaware of the intrusion, we call the resulting portrait a “candid.” In many posed portraits, the photographed feel compelled to mug for the camera, stretching a contrived smile across their face. A candid is more genuine because it captures the subject in an unguarded moment.
We also call unguarded speech “candid.” Someone making candid comments is frank and earnestly speaking their mind. It’s often “off the cuff” and “spur of the moment” language, uttered without the benefit of premeditation.
Criminal courts recognize the sincerity of candid speech. Criminal defense lawyers generally aren’t allowed to enter previous statements made by the accused as the law recognizes that testimony as “self-serving hearsay.” A notable exception is when a judge designates tendered testimony as an “excited utterance”—something blurted out in the heat of the moment during a stressful encounter. Candidly, excited utterances are spontaneous and potentially more genuine.
When someone speaks candidly, it doesn’t guarantee what they say is true, but it gives us confidence that they truly believe what they are saying. I trust the sincerity of everything someone says after they stub their toe.