So-called fake news is not a new phenomenon. It’s been around since the beginning of the Republic. And yet there is something different and more insidious going on when we have officials in the highest reaches of our government attempting to delegitimize the mainstream media by labeling stories that run counter to their preferred narratives as “fake news.” Yet there is fake news. Lots of it. Conspiracy theories abound like weeds in the garden and persist despite repeated debunking. What does this tell about ourselves and what are the implications for our democracy? Each fall, Mass Humanities brings a stellar group of scholars, journalists, and public officials together for a series of public conversations examining fundamental aspects of our democratic culture. Past symposia have focused on the Presidency, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Supreme Court, the role of the media in our democracy, military and civic culture in America and the Internet and democracy, economic inequality, and racial conciliation. This talk focuses on the effect of "fake news" on our democracy. (Image: [Mass Humanities](http://masshumanities.org/programs/symposium/ "Mass Humanities"))