Post-truth became a political buzzword after being named Oxford’s Word of the Year in 2016. It surged with Donald Trump’s rise in the U.S. and Nigel Farage’s role in the Brexit vote, and has since re-emerged with the spread of populist leaders across Europe. Post-truth is perceived as a threat to democracy. While truth is a core democratic value, post-truth is linked to fake news and misinformation, undermining this value and sparking moral panic about the crisis of democracy.

In my book, I challenge this wisdom and argue that the concept of post-truth should be rethought. I argue that such an understanding of post-truth that views the dichotomy of objective facts and misinformation offers a simplistic model of public opinion where people can either be emotional or cognitive when the reality is that individuals are both. Instead, I propose that post-truth is a type of political discourse premised on the articulation of desire, creating a sense of belonging to a shared identity, while also evoking the yearning for the fulfilment of the desire. Post-truth is not premised on the dichotomy of truth and falsehood, nor is it a polarizing populist discourse which dichotomizes elites and masses, but rather is a political discourse featuring desire.

Post-truth discourse has two main parts: elite rhetoric and how citizens relate to it. Elite (individuals in a position to influence social groups and increase their awareness) rhetoric highlights an aspirational desire, followed by the tools to fulfil the desire, complemented by emotions to intensify the yearning for the fulfilment of desire. The combination of these attributes creates a logical, coherent and compelling argument which highlights an aspirational desire and the means to fulfil the desire. The desire is articulated within a specific political and media landscape, creating a contextually relevant and meaningful political narrative. Citizens, in turn, connect to this rhetoric through shared feelings and experiences, finding meaning and identity within the narrative. Emotional rhetoric is strategically harnessed to forge a connection with the citizens, aiding them in deriving meaning from the narrative. Post-truth discourse hinges on how elite rhetoric of desire engages emotion and positions citizens within political narratives, shaping collective meaning and identity. Post-truth narratives cannot be falsified nor factually confirmed as they are structured around the articulation of a desire. Considering this, post-truth discourse can both bolster or hinder democratic values. I want to discuss two democratic movements which feature post-truth discourse in Pakistan.

The first is the discourse stemming from the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, emphasizing the struggle for Baloch rights, with notable female figures, Dr Mahrang Baloch, Sammi Deen Baloch, and Dr Sabiha Baloch, leading the movement. In unpacking this discourse, the aspirational desire is for justice, respect of Baloch rights and the creation of an egalitarian society is contextualized within the context of enforced disappearances and extra-judicial killings at the hands of the law-enforcement and security agencies operating on behalf of the state. When Dr Mahrang Baloch during an interview with Jamhoor says, ‘Deals are made in Islamabad, in these assemblies, regarding our lands, our resources, and the killings and displacement of our people’, it highlights a grave situation about the functioning of Baloch society, and reinforces the colonial narrative of how to rule a people by using suppression tactics and erasing one’s identity, culture and practices under the banner of unity and one nation. It is within this context that the aspirational desire for reclaiming what has been lost and seeking accountability from the state, which has snatched away the rights of the Baloch people, emerges.

The slogan ‘Tum kitne Karima maaroge? Har ghar se Karima niklegee’ (How many Karimas will you kill? A Karima will emerge from every home) is an example of how emotional appeals intertwine to engage individuals with the narrative of Baloch unity in the face of state repression, and further entrenches the desire for reinstating an autonomous and dignified Baloch nation as well as restoring Baloch identity and culture. The narrative also highlights the means to fulfil the desire – Baloch women’s leadership and mobilization is the means of reclaiming the secular and egalitarian roots of the Baloch society. The mobilization by female leadership, and the sheer increase in women’s participation in the movement are a testament to how women’s liberation is inseparable from the broader Baloch struggle.

There is a sense of belonging which appears within this Baloch struggle, intertwined with women’s liberation, creating a shared Baloch struggle, whilst also instilling the yearning to fulfil the desire for restoring and reclaiming autonomy and dignity for Baloch people. The nationalist rhetoric overlaps with the feminist movement, providing us with a discourse that not only highlights the suffering of the Baloch people but also articulates the desire for change and hope for a dignified, egalitarian and autonomous Baloch nation. This narrative is reinforced by the factual realities of resource governance in Balochistan. The imbalance further anchors grievances of dispossession and fuels the demand for autonomy and self-determination. This Baloch identity is a collective social identity binding the Baloch people together, and is a beacon of hope, change, and progression. It also highlights the dominant narrative of disdain for the state and law-enforcing agencies, which have oppressed the Baloch people.

The second post-truth discourse that made a breakthrough concerned Naya Pakistan and the vision for a true democracy advocated by Imran Khan. The aspirational desire underpinning this narrative referred to the creation of a Naya Pakistan, marking a clear departure from the past of misery and inequality towards a future and society that is equitable, unified and harmonious. The perils of incompetent incumbent leaders, corruption cases, and dynastic politics took center stage, highlighting the miserable experiences of ordinary citizens, and grounding the rhetoric of tabdeeli and Naya Pakistan. The desire for redemption is structured around the promise of a better and new tomorrow – “to make Pakistan great again”.

The rhetoric of desire of Naya Pakistan evoked a sense of community, yearning for the idea of One Pakistan  – a new socio-political order based on equality, social justice, accountability and pluralism.  Naya Pakistan discourse emerged as an aspirational desire, promising a break from a past of incumbent incompetent politicians, inequality and corruption toward a more just society under Khan’s leadership, the savior of democracy. The emotional undertone to this narrative came from words such as inquilab and tsunami, providing hope for a positive future, instilling a yearning for the fulfilment of the desire to establish a true democracy where the suffering of the citizenry will be corrected. Although a new Pakistan is a collective identity binding the nation together and is a beacon of hope, change, and progression, it also highlights the dominant narrative of disdain for the incumbent incompetent leaders who have hindered the desired destiny of the country.

Post-truth narratives illustrate how desire-based rhetoric channels public aspirations, appealing to shared identities rather than factual claims. Post-truth rhetoric taps into subjective desires, mobilizing democratic support by framing change through a collective identity and idealized values, as evidenced in the popularity of the discourse by Baloch Yakjehti Committee advocating for upholding the dignity of Baloch people and Imran Khan’s rhetoric of Naya Pakistan which created a shared national aspiration for a true democratic state. Using the analytical framework of post-truth discourse to examine the interplay between elite rhetoric, context, and citizens’ positionality opens a research stream into how democratic resilience can emerge from post-truth narratives. These discourses reveal how post-truth can both disrupt and reshape democratic imaginaries, making it highly relevant to understanding Pakistan’s polarized political landscape. In times of democratic crisis, when moral panics dominate and plurality in discourse is suppressed by entrenched state structures, examining post-truth rhetoric allows us to see how democratic energy is revitalized through alternative claims to belonging and justice.