The post-truth age, the fake news industry, the Russian Federation and the Central European area

Abstract

In this text, I first come up with the conceptualization of the terms ‘post-truth age’, ‘news’ and ‘fake news’. I explain the difference between news and fake news in a larger context of the post-truth age. In this regard I argue that for the contemporary period there are some –although not revolutionary – differences from previous forms of manipulations and propaganda. I’m also convinced that there is not a such radical difference between news and fake news. Further, I define the fake news industry and its linkage to the related soft-power strategy as manufactured and disseminated by the current Russian Federation and its allied forces in Central European countries with some examples from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. I argue that social and identitarian dimensions play an important role and may be explained by new societal cleavages as well as by activities conducted by homegrown patriotic campaigners, citizen curators of information and useful idiots.