Psychology experiments into conformity show, conclusively, that the vast majority of people will unconsciously distort (to varying degrees) their own perception of reality to fit a prevailing orthodoxy, or 'narrative'. In many contexts many are, in a sense, incapable of unorthodox thinking.
Personally I find this research quite depressing, but revealing about the current environment, since it seems to be getting worse. argumentum ad populum defines the truth since any fact is so easily 'fact-checked' in to oblivion.