Denialism gives you victim / threatened status (those evildoers are attacking our beliefs, we need to be warriors), enough victories to think of oneself as a winner but maintain the
communal aspects of thinking oneself under threat, charismatic leaders, the companionship of shared beliefs, a sense of superiority to those who disbelieve, and, in the most cult - like aspect, the assurance of being above mere facts, of
living in a world where your personal beliefs trump mere
objective facts.