Deeper into Populist and Authoritarian Bald-Faced Bullshit

The classical notion of bullshit requires that speakers make an assertion, are indifferent to its truth and seek to conceal their indifference. In this paper we examine bald-faced bullshit, a form of bullshit characterized by the speaker’s unconcealed indifference to truth, and we argue that it fulfills five functions in populist and authoritarian politics. The notion of bald-faced bullshit helps to better understand current populist and authoritarian speech which uses bullshit for (1) evasion, (2) attention-seeking, (3) power projection, and (4) the systematic paralysis of the epistemic institutions in democratic societies. Crucially, it also has a (5) norm-erosive effect on public discourse by undermining the norms of assertion. By openly violating these norms, populist and authoritarian politicians create social spaces where truthfulness is irrelevant, hindering informed decision-making and eroding the foundations of democratic deliberation.