The rise and fall of rationality in language

The technical minutiae are above my pay grade, but I like how this article interprets the shift towards emotional language not just as a symptom of our "post-truth" society, but also as a consequence of our disillusionment with neoliberalism, and its cold-hearted language.

Additionally, I think that when writing about social justice, which is essentially applied ethics, emotional language is often required. But not just.

The distaste for objective language has its risks, since to address issues like global warming (or anything which heavily relies on science) we need more qualified rational discourse, not less.

Clearly, the surge of post-truth discourse does suggest such a shift, and our results are consistent with the interpretation that the post-truth phenomenon is linked to a historical seesaw in the balance between our two fundamental modes of thinking. If true, it may well be impossible to reverse the sea change we signal. Instead, societies may need to find a new balance, explicitly recognizing the importance of intuition and emotion, while at the same time making best use of the much needed power of rationality and science to deal with topics in their full complexity. Striking this balance right is urgent as rational, fact-based approaches may well be essential for maintaining functional democracies and addressing global challenges such as global warming, poverty, and the loss of nature.

Interesting parallels with a previous post.