This was mentioned in ComicCon@HOME video panel: "Watchmen and the Cruelty of Masks" which I watched last night [1][2]
And it's been mentioned by Richard Dawkins in the context of "flat-Earthers" [3], and, of course, religion itself.
Right now I'm thinking a lot about memetics as having explanatory power for the long-term effects you describe.
[1]: https://www.comic-con.org/cciathome/2020/wednesday [2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5R-9kcV0WY&feature=youtu.be [3]: https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/richard-dawkins-flat-ea...