But facts dead. Our findings about conspiracy theories are the newest—and maybe most extreme—in an emerging body of research demonstrating the persuasive power of facts and evidence. For instance, while it was once believed that correcting falsehoods that aligns with one’s politics would just cause people to dig in and consider them much more, this concept of a “backfire” has itself been debunked: Many studies consistently find that corrections and warning labels reduce belief in, and sharing of, falsehoods—even amongst those that most distrust the fact-checkers making the corrections. Similarly, evidence-based arguments can change partisans’ minds on political issues, even after they are actively reminded that the argument goes against their party leader’s position. And easily reminding people to take into consideration whether content is accurate before they share it could possibly substantially reduce the spread of misinformation.
And if facts aren’t dead, then there’s hope for democracy—though this arguably requires a consensus set of facts from which rival factions can work. There may be indeed widespread partisan disagreement on basic facts, and a disturbing level of belief in conspiracy theories. Yet this doesn’t necessarily mean our minds are inescapably warped by our politics and identities. When faced with evidence—even inconvenient or uncomfortable evidence—many individuals shift their considering in response. And so if it’s possible to disseminate accurate information widely enough, perhaps with the assistance of AI, we may find a way to reestablish the factual common ground that’s missing from society today.
