In the mid-80's a new newspaper was launched called "USA Today". It was a national newspaper which was kind of novel, as most were regional, but the big thing was that it was very specifically written for a fifth-grade reading level. It was a big deal at the time - a lot of "doom and gloom" naysayers talking about how we were dumbing down the "populace" (that's a fancy word meaning everybody) and so on.

Around this time Reagan killed the Fairness Doctrine so AM radio stations could blowtorch right-wing assholery 24/7 and not have to worry about pesky counterpoint arguments.

In the mid-90s a bunch of Nixon sycophants started Fox News and actively attacked reason and logic.

Somewhere around the Iraq War II: Geedubz Boogaloo, we got faceplant and twits, two "apps" that let everyone hold forth on their lifelong scholarly pursuits.

And now, all of those things have been replicated around the world for - well, at least a decade or two now. So. Heads up!