Post-truth refers to widespread documentation of and concern about disputes over public truth claims. It is about relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief. People are more likely to accept an argument based on emotions and beliefs rather than facts. The term was used academically and publicly before 2016, but “post-truth” was named Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year in 2016, after the term’s rapid growth in popularity during the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the Brexit referendum in the U.K. Post-truth has become associated with the phrase “post-truth politics”. Post-truth is specifically concerned with 21st century communication technologies and cultural practices, but some scientists claim that post-truth has similarities with past political debates about postmodernity and dishonesty in politics. But what are the differences between post-truth and a lie? The liar accepts that there is a truth, knows what the truth is, but decides to tell a different story. A lie refers to specific facts that have precise spatial-temporal coordinates. Post-truth doesn’t simply deny or question certain facts, but aims to undermine the theoretical infrastructure that makes it possible to have a conversation about the truth.
