Contesting Europe: The detrimental impact of post-truth politics?

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a surge in conceptual and empirical work on post-truth politics. Although the concept remains contested, this literature is based on the overarching assumption that political processes – whether in the institutions of the political system or in the broader public sphere – are increasingly shaped by the spread of both inadvertent misinformation and deliberate disinformation. Social and other digital media are viewed as facilitating such processes in that they provide an infrastructure for the spread of such mis- and disinformation. This infrastructure has been exploited in particular by right-wing populist actors, underlining the close connection between post-truth politics, the emergence of social media and the recent resurgence of populism and authoritarianism in many parts of the world. Clearly, post-truth politics has also had a profound effect on European integration, as demonstrated most strikingly by the contribution of mis- and disinformation campaigns in the wake of the Brexit referendum. The aim of this panel is therefore to explore the relevance of post-truth politics from the vantage point of the (de-)legitimation of European integration and the looming prospect of European disintegration. In particular, the panel addresses questions about the role that post-truth politics has played in public debates and deliberation about European integration. The papers in this panel approach this question from a conceptual, theoretical and/or empirical perspective.

Title	Details
News, misinformation and support for the EU: exploring the effect of social media as polarizing force or neutral mediators	View Paper Details
“Europe is Christian, or it is not Europe”: post-truth politics and religion in Matteo Salvini’s tweets	View Paper Details
Post-Truth Politics, Women Academics and the Brexit Debate	View Paper Details
Post-Truth Politics as a Mobilization Tool: EU Contestation in the Alternative for Germany’s Campaign for the 2019 European Parliament Elections	View Paper Details