The Death of Truth

“A precise description of the punishment cell we have built around our minds and the first few steps back towards light and air.” –Timothy Snyder, Author of On Tyranny and Professor of History, Yale University

“With a front row seat in the battle against disinformation, Steven Brill has produced another riveting narrative based on his trademark, trailblazing reporting. The Death of Truth is the definitive story about a world in crisis and a prescription for how to fix it. From Silicon Valley to Madison Avenue to the Capitol on January 6 to Moscow (where Russian security agents directed threats against him), Brill has pulled together in one story all the forces that have pulled us apart” –Jill Abramson, former Executive Editor, The New York Times

“A seminal, ground-breaking, documented and honest examination of two of the central dilemmas of our time—what is truth and where to find it.” —Bob Woodward, associate editor at The Washington Post and author of fifteen #1 New York Times best sellers

“A deep dive into the muck of fake news…Brill, author of The Teamsters and America’s Bitter Pill, examines the “toxic mix” of misinformation, disinformation, myths, alternative “facts,” and conspiracy theories that have proliferated online, leading to a lack of belief in shared truths, distrust in the legitimacy of science and expertise, and an erosion of our sense of community…. Underscoring the acute need for reform, the author offers suggestions, including amending Section 230 to account for dangerous algorithms, ending online anonymity, directing the Federal Trade Commission to enforce providers’ contracts with users to protect them from harmful content, and bolstering online news and information literacy for K-12 students…A brisk, well-informed, and urgent message.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Brill’s new book The Death of Truth is not a just-in-time gift to America, it is a vital, past-due last chance to free global societies as we slide into the quicksand of a genuine Orwellian world. Misguided media promoting misinformation is not new, leading wrongly to wars as we know over the sinking of the Maine in 1898, the Mexican American War of 1846, and the burning of the Reichstag in 1933. However, Brill shows us how new uncontrolled commercial social media platforms have the distortion of truth as a core business model, playing recklessly into the hand of demagoguery. Happily Brill goes beyond despair to show how freedom and truth can be fortified with swift collective action addressing technology, law, policy, and cultures.” —Jeffrey Sonnenfeld; Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Studies at Yale University and founder and CEO of the Chief Executive Leadership Institute

“The Death of Truth offers a rare combination of powerful reporting and persuasive commentary. Brill’s proposed approach, which seeks to avoid censorship while simultaneously curbing the vices of Silicon Valley control, is ingenious and perhaps visionary. His book is also a memorable personal testament to the pursuit of truth in our too often and too easily morally compromised world.“—Floyd Abrams, First Amendment attorney and author of The Soul of the First Amendment

STEVEN BRILL is the best-selling author of The Teamsters, America’s Bitter Pill, and Tailspin. He has written for The New York Times, Time, The New Yorker, and other national publications. Brill is the cofounder and co-CEO of NewsGuard, which rates the reliability of news and information websites. He is also the founder of The American Lawyer, Brill’s Content magazine, Court TV, the CLEAR registered traveler program, and the Yale Journalism Initiative. He lives near New York City.

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