否思“后真相”:基于李普曼舆论学视角

Unthinking"Post-Truth":A Challenge from Lippmann's Public Opinion

当前西方后真相研究涵盖哲学、政治学、传播学、舆论学等学科,触及当代哲学中有关“真理”“客观事实”等诸多理论讨论。“后真相”的定义强调“客观事实”在舆论形成过程中的作用被大大削弱了,但“舆论”作为这个定义中的关键词却没有引起西方学界的足够重视。借鉴李普曼的舆论学理论视角对后真相的定义进行批判性反思发现:舆论形成的最大动因是“虚构”,而不是“客观事实”;并且,基于李普曼对人类语言主观性的思考,有必要指出“客观事实”和“事实的客观性”的区别。研究认为西方的价值观、偏见及思维方式使得后真相研究的局限性十分突出。后真相研究需要从客观事实回到完整的人,他们不是为某种假定的“真相”所制约的人,而是在解蔽过程中不断开放的人。

Many of the contemporary discussions regarding"post-truth"address normative concerns surrounding"truth"and"objective fact"in the fields of philosophy,politics,communication,and so forth.Posttruth seeks to describe a state where the influence of"objective fact"in the formation of public opinion has greatly diminished.Yet,despite the breadth and depth of the extant English-language literature,the need to understand"public opinion"within the context of post-truth's definition has been significantly underplayed.This essay,therefore,seeks to critically evaluate the notion of post-truth from positions put forward by Walter Lippmann in his work Public Opinion.From Lippmann's perspective,fiction(not"objective fact")is the principle driver in the formation of public opinion.Moreover,Lippmann's arguments on the nature of language remind us of the need to distinguish between"objective facts"and the"objectivity"of facts when discussing post-truth.This essay goes on to suggest that stereotypes and prejudices present in Western thought can be clearly seen in the English-language"post-truth"literature.Future research into post-truth must move past these limitations;in order to do so,we must consider it in light of an ideal,holistic individual.The holistic individual does not allow oneself to be bound by fixed or arbitrarily established conceptions of truth,but its committed to an openness which allows for the perpetual revealing and rebirth of what we take to be true.