Post Truth
A pervasive force distorting public discourse, hampering effective policymaking, and creating fertile ground for exploitation and manipulation.
On November 16, 2016, Oxford Dictionaries declared "post-truth" as its word of the year, highlighting a seismic shift in public discourse. The term saw a staggering 2,000 percent increase in usage between 2015 and 2016, reflecting its emergence as a significant cultural phenomenon. Unlike traditional approaches that might weaken the core and center of truth, post-truth employs a more insidious strategy: it aims to disqualify truth from the outset.
Post-truth strategies operate by attempting to supplant one version of truth with another, often using extensive manipulation and surveillance. The objective here is not to establish an alternate truth but to sow doubt and confusion, muddying the water so people are unsure what to believe. In this environment, any claim to truth becomes equally questionable, leading to cognitive dissonance among the public. Post-truth strategies execute a sophisticated form of deception that does not just bend the truth but replaces it with a fabricated reality. Those who deploy these strategies often leverage advanced methods of manipulation and extensive surveillance capabilities to achieve their aims. The primary objective is not to anchor a new truth but to sow the seeds of doubt and confusion on a grand scale. The tactics blur the lines between fact and fiction so effectively that the public finds it increasingly challenging to discern what to believe. Amid this fog of uncertainty, any statement—no matter its origin or credibility—becomes a point of contention. This atmosphere stokes cognitive dissonance within society, making it hard for individuals to reconcile conflicting information.
To further complicate matters, post-truth maneuvers have a unique way of incorporating dissent and criticism into their narrative fabric. Under the guise of "alternative facts," post-truth tolerates opposing views and gives them space to breathe—only to later reject them. While this may seem paradoxical, it is part of the design. These "alternative facts" often directly oppose one another, creating inherent contradictions that would typically undermine a coherent narrative. However, in the realm of post-truth, these contradictions become assets. They add layers of complexity that further obfuscate the truth, making it even more challenging for the public to navigate the labyrinth of information and disinformation.
Examples:
2016 Presidential Election: During the election cycle, claims often eclipsed facts. For example, false information circulated widely on social media platforms, including allegations about candidate Hillary Clinton's involvement in various conspiracies, none of which were substantiated. The spread of such misinformation made it difficult for voters to discern reality, contributing to a post-truth environment.
COVID-19 Pandemic: The handling of information around COVID-19 has been a breeding ground for post-truth narratives. From the outset, conflicting messages from authorities about the severity of the virus, the effectiveness of masks, and the safety of vaccines have muddled public understanding, leading to confusion and skepticism.
Climate Change: Despite a scientific consensus on human-caused climate change, campaigns to sow doubt about this reality have been effective. Fossil fuel interests have disseminated misleading studies and false narratives to blur the line between scientific fact and opinion.
Social Media Echo Chambers: Platforms like Facebook and Twitter have algorithms that create echo chambers, where users only see content that aligns with their pre-existing beliefs. Social Media Echo Chambers have exacerbated the spread of misinformation, making it easier to replace objective truth with emotionally appealing falsehoods.
"Fake News" as a Discrediting Tool: The term "fake news" itself has become a weapon to delegitimize genuine journalistic efforts. By labeling uncomfortable facts as "fake news," political leaders and public figures can create confusion about reliable sources.
Racial and Social Injustices: Conversations around racial inequality and systemic injustice often devolve into post-truth debates. Misinformation uses false crime rates, economic indicators, or historical events to create divisive narratives that distract from factual discourse.
Conspiracy Theories: From QAnon to the "birther" conspiracy about President Obama's place of birth, these widely circulated but unfounded beliefs contribute to a post-truth landscape by replacing verified information with speculative or false narratives.
Political Polarization: The extreme polarization of American politics encourages post-truth reasoning, where allegiance to a party or individual often trumps objective evaluation of facts. Political Polarization is evident in matters like impeachment proceedings or Supreme Court nominations, where the lines between truth and allegiance blur.
Science Denial: The rejection of scientific fact in favor of personal or political belief is another manifestation of post-truth, evident in debates over issues like vaccinations, evolution education in schools, and COVID-19 mitigation measures.
This engineered chaos corrodes the foundation of rational discourse. As contradictory "facts" muddy the waters, the societal pursuit of truth becomes futile. The idea that a collective understanding of reality is possible erodes, taking with it the principles fundamental for a functioning democracy and an informed citizenry. In this twisted landscape, the likelihood of arriving at a consensus on what is true diminishes, and the belief that such a consensus could exist also begins to wane. The outcome is a societal climate fraught with doubt, skepticism, and a broken compass for discerning truth, leaving populations vulnerable to further manipulation and control.
Post-truth also accommodates dissent and criticism in a cunning maneuver by simultaneously rejecting "alternative facts." The dissent and criticism are paradoxical because these alternative facts often contradict each other. Yet, the post-truth paradigm thrives on such contradictions, as they further contribute to public doubt and confusion. The result is a landscape where rational discourse suffers, and the possibility of reaching a consensus understanding of truth becomes increasingly remote.
By actively fostering an environment of skepticism, post-truth makes it difficult to challenge falsehoods effectively. People become disoriented, finding it increasingly challenging to differentiate between genuine facts and manipulated information. As truth becomes a disputed territory, the stage is set for manipulation on an unprecedented scale, affecting everything from elections and public policy to social relationships and individual beliefs. By deliberately nurturing a culture of skepticism, post-truth disempowers individuals and communities from effectively challenging false claims. The resulting atmosphere of confusion leaves people struggling to distinguish authentic information from manipulated narratives. What were once clear distinctions between truth and falsehood become blurred, and truth becomes an arena for power plays and manipulative tactics. In this bewildering environment, the opportunity for deceit scales to an entirely new level, with far-reaching implications that ripple across all aspects of society. This far reach includes the electoral process, the formation and execution of public policy, social interactions, and even the core beliefs that individuals hold dear.
But post-truth's ambition does not stop at warping our immediate perceptions of reality; it seeks to destroy the structures that enable us to identify what is true. It is an assault not merely on language but also on the psychological underpinnings guiding our understanding of the world. This warping extends its tendrils into the political realm, tearing at the fabric of democratic institutions that rely on an informed citizenry. Ultimately, it creates a society where the pursuit of objective truth degenerates into a futile game of illusions, where facts are as mutable as quicksand and as elusive as smoke.
Post-truth is not a passive player in this scenario but an active force with a multifaceted impact. It disorients our cognitive faculties, corrupts the political dialogue, and destabilizes social harmony. As it permeates these various layers of society, it also changes the rules of engagement. It turns the quest for objective truth into a complex maze of falsehoods and half-truths, designed to lead us astray rather than toward understanding. The ultimate tragedy here is that post-truth does not just obscure the path to objective reality; it erases the notion that such a path could exist, leaving society wandering in a self-perpetuating fog of confusion and vulnerability.
Post-truth does not merely distort our perception of reality; it aims to dismantle the framework by which we discern truth. Its impact extends beyond language and enters the realms of psychology, politics, and society, effectively turning the quest for objective truth into a game of smoke and mirrors.