"The Death of the Expert" and the Crisis of Trust in Scientific Communication in the Age of Post-Truth: why Scientists and Academic Communities are Losing the Battle for Attention to Bloggers

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to analyze the phenomenon of the crisis of trust in expert knowledge in the era of digital mediatization and post-truth, to elucidate the reasons why traditional academic communication loses the battle for audience attention to bloggers, and to formulate proposals for restoring trust in scientific discourse within the new media landscape. Research methodology. The research methodology is based on an interdisciplinary approach that combines insights from media studies, sociology of knowledge, psychology, and cultural studies; the method of theoretical analysis and synthesis of scientific sources to systematize approaches to understanding the crisis of expertise; a comparative method for contrasting the communication strategies of the academic community and bloggers; and a method of generalizing empirical data on the impact of misinformation on public trust. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the systematic analysis of the multidimensional nature of the expertise crisis, which combines external (media, technological, algorithmic) and internal (institutional, psychological, ethical) factors. For the first time in Ukrainian academic discourse, the work comprehensively examines the impact of "paper mills" and the replication crisis on public trust in science as internal determinants of the decline in the authority of expert knowledge. An original interpretation of the concept of "critical trust" is proposed as an alternative to the simplified dichotomy of "trust vs. distrust". Conclusions. The crisis of trust in expert knowledge has a multidimensional nature, caused by both external factors and internal problems of science itself – the replication crisis, data fabrication, the activities of "paper mills", and the deformation of the peer-review system. The new hierarchy of authorities, where bloggers compete with scientists for public attention, is based on the mechanism of parasocial trust and emotional connection with the audience, which becomes possible against the backdrop of the blurring of boundaries between truth and fiction – a key feature of post-truth. Restoring trust in science is possible only under the condition of systemic changes at three levels: internal cleansing of the academic community, institutional transparency, and a transition from a monologue of experts to a participatory dialogue with society.