From about the 1600s, science gained authority at the expense of theology due to its ability to predict and manipulate the physical world. Physics, chemestry and engineering allowed us to do things that would have been seen as magical a couple of centuries earlier. Those nations and individuals who rejected science became losers.

But as the term "science" gained in authority, other institutions were losing influence, in particular theologians and similar ideologes. Many of these wanted to be seen as having authority similar to what scientists enjoyed.

Since most people realize that "Theology" is not real science, new names and tactics have been invented to help camuflage institutions as "scientific", such as "Intelligent Design", "<insert identity group> studies" where the practitions care more about the idelogical consequences than the ability to predict real world outcomes.

These institutions will both promote science denialism within their own ranks and also cause it within opposing ideologies. Both intelligent design advocates and gender studies advocates will reject findings from science (mostly biology) when they contradict their preferred ideology, even when the findings are as close to scientific facts as it is possible to come. Both do that by presenting bad faith arguments and also labelling non-believers within their ranks as what would in earlier times be labeled "evil heretics".

When even "scientific facts" are attacked like that, other disciplines with varying predictive power, such as climate science, economics or cosmology will suffer even more effective assaults by ideologes.

If we cannot somehow stop this developement, we are heading for another "Dark Age". I honestly dont know how this developement can be stopped at this point. At the very least, it will require cooperation across idelogical boundaries to do so, and this can only happen if the science denial of both sides are simultaneously purged.