The first Trump administration began with a lie. … When there is no objective truth, when everyone gets to make up their own reality, their own script, and their own facts, authoritarians thrive. … That means turning to experts on the history of disinformation, such as philosophers of science such as Cailin O’Connor and James Owen Weatherall, who argue that social forces explain the persistence of false beliefs … Experts in the field of misinformation say that we know a lot about different kinds of misinformation, who is targeted and why, and the means to spread it. … What we don’t know, at least not yet, is how to stop it.

For the full story, please visit https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/04/signalgate-trump-administration-messaging/682308/.