Abstract

In this paper we adopt a diachronic perspective on the phenomenon of fake news, which we discuss by reference to four anthology cases: i. the struggle for the succession of Julius Caesar, in ancient Rome; ii. The Secret History of Procopius of Caesarea, in late antiquity; iii.the unpredictable Pietro Aretino, from the age of the first printed books; iv. Benjamin Franklin and his imitators during the American revolution from the 19th century, when what mattered was the construction of the image of supreme evil. Our aim is to show that, beyond the infatuation with the term “post-truth” that began in 2016, when we take a look at human history we encounter systematic processes addressing the foundation schemata in the constitution of any public debate: the articulation of the concepts of “fact” and “truth”, diverted by various power rationales.