The Post-Truth Condition in Capitalist Society: A Critical Enquiry

ABSTRACT It is being increasingly recognized that a post-truth phenomenon has arrived where lies and deception inform politics and everyday life as a normal state of affairs in (advanced) capitalist societies. In the post-truth world, feelings are more accurate than facts, and lies are constantly told for the purpose of the political subordination of reality. The post-truth condition is deeply skeptical of objective truth and experts/scientists. This article discusses the various traits of the post-truth phenomenon, explains its connection to post-modernist idealist philosophy, and its association with Far Right politics. It also explains the post-truth phenomenon in terms of the crisis-ridden bourgeois political economy and bourgeois politics, including the contradictions of imperialism. It argues that the post-truth phenomenon is only partly because of Far Right politics and that its ultimate cause lies in the capitalist system as a whole. This article concludes by pointing out what is to be done to counter the post-truth condition.