Concluding Reflections on Europe in the Age of Post-truth Politics

Abstract

This chapter presents the book’s concluding reflections and argues that the contributors to this volume are in general agreement on the detrimental effects of that post-truth politics can have on European democracies, but that this does not necessarily mean that democracy is doomed. The challenges posed by the post-truth era have also triggered resistance among various governmental agencies and international organisations. Recent experience from COVID-19 shows that on the one hand a small group of populist activists have been fairly successful in stoking some people’s fears of vaccines and their opposition to various mitigation measures, casting doubt on the scientific information provided by health experts. On the other hand, some commentators have predicted that the pandemic spells the end of the post-truth era. As the conditions for post-truth politics remain, it would be premature to declare the demise of post-truth politics any time soon. At the same time, as support for populist political parties has stagnated or even declined in recent European elections, there is hope that the tide has been stemmed at least for the time being.