The Politics of Post-Truth

Are Western democracies undergoing a profound epistemological shift? Are we facing a deep-seated crisis of truth? This paper critically evaluates the post-truth narrative and its implicit normative ideas. First, I examine several interpretations of ‘post-truth’ and explain why each of them faces certain challenges. Second, I argue that post-truth rhetoric is deeply normative and questionable on epistemic, moral, and political grounds. Third, I situate the contemporary post-truth narrative within a wider political framework. I conclude that post-truth rhetoric is highly problematic and something we are better off without