Beyond post-truth: Projecting the future trajectory of climate misinformation
Published in: PLOS Climate, 2026
Climate misinformation represents one of the most significant barriers to effective climate action in the 21st century. Building upon Yotam Ophir’s comprehensive framework in Misinformation & Society, this essay examines the evolving landscape of climate misinformation and projects its future trajectory. Ophir’s interdisciplinary approach, which integrates historical, psychological, and technological perspectives, provides crucial insights into how climate misinformation operates within broader systems of information disorder.
This paper extends Ophir’s arguments by examining critical dimensions of his work, including the shift from outright denial to more sophisticated delay and deflection tactics, the role of emerging technologies including artificial intelligence in amplifying misinformation spread, and the political economy of climate misinformation characterized by asymmetric epistemic relationships. Drawing on recent research, I project that climate misinformation will increasingly manifest through narratives of technological futurism and transformation, the pretense of economic crisis through environmental catastrophe, and the social implications of international weaponized uncertainty inflamed by misinformation. The essay concludes by proposing an integrated intervention framework that reviews proposed solutions including psychological inoculation, systemic media literacy, and structural reforms to digital and online platform governance.
Suggested reference: Rice JK (2026) Beyond post-truth: Projecting the future trajectory of climate misinformation. PLOS Clim 5(5): e0000916. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000916
Recommended citation: Rice JK (2026) "Beyond post-truth: Projecting the future trajectory of climate misinformation." PLOS Climate 5(5): e0000916. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000916
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