> I have never heard the Confederate flag called a "battle flag" before the whole fracas around getting it banned. This is just a coincidence. I've heard the

> I have never heard the Confederate flag called a "battle flag" before the whole fracas around getting it banned. This is just a coincidence. I've heard the confederate flag referred to as the battle flag for years and almost exclusively by those who support (or are at least sympathetic to) flying that flag. With that stated, I agree that NPR is guilty of "linguistic contortions" but I can't think of a single news source that isn't guilty of it. If you can think of some exceptions, I'd be genuinely interested in a recommendation.