DEMOCRACY WATCHU.S. Election: How Populists Encourage Blind Mistrust – and How to Push Back
At the heart of liberal democracy lies the principle ofnumerous institutions which operate independently to balance competing interests. For this principle to work, it’s important that the public trust that these diverse voices act in good faith. Populists, however, seek to chip away at this by accusing a wide variety of organizations as either being run by “elites,” or working as agents of elite interests. Details may vary from country to country, but the overall function remains the same: to discredit democratic institutions or the media. As the US gears up for the 2024 election, it’s crucial for people to understand how populists cultivate blind mistrust of independent institutions.
Populism is booming. The first US Republican primary is only weeks away and former president Donald Trump, who is a master of populist techniques, commands substantial support. Meanwhile one in three Europeans are now voting for populist parties.
My colleagues and I carried out research of politicians and news media in the US, UK, and Australia that revealed a significant populist strategy to present “elites” – such as opposition politicians, lawyers and civil servants – as setting out to misinform and manipulate the public.
At the heart of liberal democracy lies the principle of pluralism, that there are diverse views on how society should work and that numerous institutions operate independently to balance competing interests. For this principle to work, it’s important that the public trust that these diverse voices act in good faith.
Who Are “Elites”?
However, populists seek to chip away at this by accusing a wide variety of organizations as either being run by “elites”, or working as agents of elite interests.
The specifics may vary depending on the national context, such as who exactly “the elites” are and why they supposedly collude. But the overall function remains the same: to discredit democratic institutions or the media.
This is because when people see institutions such as the judiciary, the media and universities as connected to them and working for the good of the public, the less likely they are to listen to or trust them.
This might sound familiar as prominent populist, Donald Trump, has regularly spoken of “witch hunts” and “the deep state”, making these central to his efforts to deflect accountability for his past actions as he heads for the 2024 Republican nomination for US president.
But this is not a new strategy for him. In his 2016 presidential bid, Trump often spoke of “special interests in control” who “rigged the political and economic system” and criticized various organizations of secretly working to undermine him.
In our research, my colleagues and I argued that this technique is so widespread because its psychological functions are to again erode social trust in democratic institutions. It’s also important to note that the idea of “elite collusion” storylines and terminology are not easily addressed by using fact-based responses because they are not centred on what the information is, but rather, on who conveys the information.
