The Big Hoax: The Anatomy of Anti-Intellectualism, Denialism and Conspiracy Theories, Past and Present

Humber Liberal Arts Academic Conference 2021

From Federalist Era Conspiracy Theories, to past and present anti-vaccination movements and climate change denial, distrust of the expert has been a salient trait in cultural trends globally. Now, with insurrection in the United States Capitol, a global increase in far-right authoritarianism, and the troubling rise of the planet’s temperature, the effects of anti-intellectualism are being felt across the world, and even once intellectually cloistered college and university campuses are being turned into battlegrounds. While the anti-intellectual movement has persisted historically, in recent years it has been mainstreamed and weaponized by politicians and pundits to rally and enflame a base and to sow discord amongst the population.

The seventh annual Humber@TIFA interdisciplinary conference seeks to unearth the roots, causes and potential impacts that this movement has or may have through hosting online discussions about anti-intellectualism, denialism, distrust in media and conspiracy theories from the past to the present.

Tune in to plenary sessions, free and open to the public, October 22–23. Learn more about the virtual events below.

Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA) logo          Humber Faculty of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Innovative Learning Logo


Each event will be available to view for 72 hours after the indicated start time. All times are in ET.

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