@DaojoanJA Westenberg It is just a new approach to an old dilemma: Authoritarianism is based on fraud and fraud requires intellectual superiority; i.e., the fraudster needs to know something the deceived doesn't. Hence, knowledgeable people are a threat for autocrats.

In the past, access to knowledge was limited, most people couldn't even read. But things have changed and education and knowledge are more accessible. So they've to "pollute" the knowledge through fake information and to shame knowledge.