Post-Truth cover art

Post-Truth

Why We Have Reached Peak Bullshit and What We Can Do About It

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 15 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

Post-Truth

By: Evan Davis
Narrated by: Evan Davis
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £14.35

Buy Now for £14.35

'A Malcolm Gladwell-style social psychology/behavioural economics primer' Evening Standard

Low-level dishonesty is rife everywhere, in the form of exaggeration, selective use of facts, economy with the truth, careful drafting - from Trump and the Brexit debate to companies that tell us 'your call is important to us'. How did we get to a place where bullshit is not just rife but apparently so effective that it's become the communications strategy of our times?

This brilliantly insightful book steps inside the panoply of deception employed in all walks of life and assesses how it has come to this. It sets out the surprising logic which explains why bullshit is both pervasive and persistent. Why are company annual reports often nonsense? Why should you not trust estate agents? And above all, why has political campaigning become the art of stretching the truth? Drawing on behavioural science, economics, psychology and of course his knowledge of the media, Evan ends by providing readers with a tool-kit to handle the kinds of deceptions we encounter every day, and charts a route through the muddy waters of the post-truth age.©2017 Evan Davis Economics Elections & Political Process Organisational Behavior Politics & Government Workplace & Organisational Behavior Business Socialism
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

A Malcolm Gladwell-style social psychology/behavioural economics primer
Subtle and wide-ranging, written with the generous intelligence and wry humour that admirers of his broadcasting will recognise
His care and his determination to make complicated ideas accessible show, above all, why he is such a good broadcaster
Davis's journey through the bullshit swamplands makes fascinating reading for anybody involved in communication (Roland White)
All stars
Most relevant
I've long been an admirer of Evan Davis ' journalism and broadcast interviewing. He is skilled at cutting through the bullshit. very entertaining book well read by Evan

superb analysis of post-Trump post-Brexit times

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I love Evan Davis, I find he makes the most complex subjects accessible. I listen to The Bottom Line despite knowing nothing about business and I get it.
I really enjoyed this book and found it helpful in understanding how we got to this world where bullshit is acceptable.

Really helpful framing of the discussion

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is well researched which discusses communication, PR and propaganda.
Evan Davis is best known as the host of BBC Newsnight and before this a well known business editor.

There is widespread public interest in the rise of fake news. However, surprisingly this isn’t a book about journalism and there is relatively limited discussion, except in the final chapters, about the rise of fake news in relation to Trump and the Brexit coverage.

The author narrates the book himself and the pace is good and he has a friendly manner.
It is well researched, but those with knowledge of communication theory will realise it isn’t saying anything particularly new and relies heavily on secondhand sources.

Post Truth, but not detailed account of fake news

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is an interesting book. it sets out a case around fake news, admittedly going a little too far into advertising and away from the idea of starting rather than crafting a reality, and having described it decided it twas always thus and after giving a few tips decided that there is nothing much more to be said about the phenomenon

Interesting, just not that interesting.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Good content, with lots of interesting stories and ideas discussed, but very repetitive. The book could be half the length and still convey all of its points.

Good ideas, too much waffling

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews