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The constitution of knowledge : a defense of truth / Jonathan Rauch.

by Rauch, Jonathan, 1960- author.

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Washington, D.C. : Brookings Institution Press, [2021]

Fake news -- United States.

Disinformation -- United States -- 21st century.

Cancel culture -- United States -- 21st century.

Social media -- Political aspects.

United States -- Intellectual life -- 21st century.

9780815738862 (hardcover) :

0815738862 (hardcover)

viii, 305 pages ; 24 cm

1 "A terrible statement unless he gets away with it": Chaos and conformity have caused an epistemic crisis -- 2 The state of nature: tribal truth: Bias, groupthink, and the epistemic war of all against all -- 3 Booting reality: the rise of networked knowledge: Outsourcing reality to a social network is humankind's greatest innovation -- 4 The constitution of knowledge: The operating system of the reality-based community -- 5 Disinformation technology: the challenge of digital media: Making the online world truth-friendly is difficult but doable -- 6 Troll epistemology: "flood the zone with shit": Disinformation is an old enemy with new weapons and powerful friends -- 7 Canceling: despotism of the few: Coercive conformity is corrupting the reality-based community -- 8 Unmute yourself: pushing back: Defending the Constitution of Knowledge requires confidence and counter-mobilization.

Analyzing trends in American disinformation and conspiracy, Rauch reaches back to the parallel eighteenth-century developments of liberal democracy and science to explain what he calls the "Constitution of Knowledge"--our social system for turning disagreement into truth. By explicating the Constitution of Knowledge and probing the war on reality, Rauch posits a defined understanding of truth and free inquiry, with discussion of how and why they should be defended.

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