Dictators have long thrived on the ignorance of the people. That is why the quality of a democracy can always be judged from the access to information that it allows. In periods when there is little or no democracy, there is little or no access to information and demands for such access can be violently suppressed. Journalists are an endangered species in dictatorships. In extreme cases, accurate information is replaced by lies. Recent examples are the aftermath of the elections in Guyana and the US. Lies in West Coast Berbice resulted in ethnic violence. Lies by Trump and QAnon in the US fuelled the violent assault on the US Capitol. Lies sustained enslavement and the holocaust, both genocidal.
