CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2022
| Author | Deluggi, Nicky |
|---|---|
| Title | Liars, Skeptics, Cheerleaders, Human Rights Implications of Post-Truth Disinformation from State Officials and Politicians |
| Summary | In the following paper I will show how disinformation from state officials and politicians affects the right to access to information and political participation. Next to the more straightforward implications for political self-determination, I examine how active dissemination of lies by figures of epistemic authority does significantly affect trust patterns between citizens, increasing polarization, impeding dialogue and obstructing access to politically relevant information by gatekeeping knowledge. Examining mostly European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) case law, I argue that the International Human Rights Law (IHRL) framework provides some argumentative basis for extending individuals’ rights as epistemic and political agents towards a “right to truth spoken by politicians”. However, challenges in balancing a possible restriction of lies and assessing the real effective harm that comes from them remain, potentially leading to a vacuum of rights protection for less visible long-term harm to individuals and public discourse. In order to have a real chance at tackling the harmful consequences of publicly told lies, reinstall trust in the public sphere and burst information bubbles, it will be necessary to shift narratives, foster information literacy and open discussion culture. |
| Supervisor | Ashraf, Cameran |
| Department | Legal Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2022/deluggi_nicky.pdf |
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