Authoritarianism is often exposed when one’s core interests and ideological commitments are publicly challenged. This has certainly been the case when one examines how elites in the left-liberal academic establishment responded to the two widely discussed hoaxes: the Sokal Hoax in the 1990s and the more recent Grievance Studies Affair. This chapter tells the story of both incidents, where bogus articles were published in middling left-liberal academic journals. Instead of reforming the peer review process, the academic establishment mercilessly criticized, smeared, and, in a couple of cases, drove from employment, the critics who conducted the hoaxes. The consequence of this dynamic damaged lives, sidelines legitimate criticisms of academic practices, undermining the credibility of the academy and sometimes helping to produce right-wing activists and conspiracy theorists who are feeding Global Trumpism. The shape and implications of these forms of left-liberal academic authoritarianism are discussed.