Blog
Far-Right Lone-Actor Terrorist Attacks and Violent Extremist use of File-Sharing Platforms
February 1, 2023
By Sean McCafferty This analysis will focus on the role of file-sharing platforms in disseminating propaganda linked to violent far-right lone-actor attacks, examining the recent Bratislava perpetrator as a case study. A pattern among a selection of attackers represents an emerging typology of behaviour within the propaganda dissemination strategies of violent extremists on the far ...
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Online Terrorism Studies: Analysis of the Literature
October 19, 2022
This article summarizes the recent research note that examines the literature on online terrorism studies, published by Ali Unlu and Kamil Yilmaz. By Kamil Yilmaz There has been a steady increase in the number of scientific productions on terrorism during the last two decades. One specific area of research that gained traction is online radicalization ...
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How Online Digital Music May Have Contributed to the Decline of the American Racist Skinhead
October 12, 2022
By Jonathan Pieslak In late June 2012 the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)—one of the premier hate-group and extremism watchdog organizations in the United States—published a report on racist skinhead subculture, describing the movement as “…among the most dangerous far-right threats facing law enforcement today.” Sadly, the report offered an all-too-accurate description of the potency ...
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How Far-Right Online Spaces Use Mainstream Media To Spread Their Ideology
October 5, 2022
This article summarizes the recent research report Mainstream media use in far-right online ecosystems, published by Mario Peucker, Thomas J. Fisher and Jacob Davey (ISD). A more in-depth analysis was also published in the journal Media , Culture & Society. By Mario Peucker Mistrust in the media is widespread among Australians, but this view becomes particularly antagonistic ...
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Close to Home: The Canadian Far Right, COVID-19 and Social Media
June 29, 2022
By Merlyna Lim and Brandon Rigato Weeks after the so-called “freedom convoy” protests ended, a familiar quietness has returned to the streets of downtown Ottawa. No more sounds of blaring horns and people partying into the wee hours. The only remaining visible traces are abandoned trucks in impound yards and barriers on streets. But these too will ...
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The Right-leaning be Memeing: Extremist Uses of Internet Memes and Insights for CVE Design
May 11, 2022
This Blog post is the first in a four-part series of article summaries from the EU H2020-funded BRaVE project’s  First Monday Special Issue exploring societal resilience to online polarization and extremism. The second is HERE. Read the full article HERE [Ed.]. By Inés Bolaños Somoano This post synopsises my article ‘The right-leaning be memeing: Extremist uses ...
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Extreme Wives: A Gender Analysis of Online Extremism—the Case of Jihadi Brides and Tradwives
May 4, 2022
By Marco Farucci The events of January 6th showcased the strength of online communities and their ability to transfer extremist ideologies from the online to the offline world. Online extremism usually takes the form of violent, racist, and misogynistic content on social media. The business models of social media platforms are designed with ‘suggesting mechanisms’ ...
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A Practitioner’s Guide to Tackling Extremist Digital Environments
March 9, 2022
By Joey Düker A recent paper I co-wrote with Cathrine Thorleifsson (C-REX, Norway) for the Radicalisation Awareness Network addresses the importance of digital environments for so-called Lone Actor terrorists. As a brief guide for practitioners, I will expand on the various roles that different platforms serve in this context, with a focus on the far ...
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Far Right and Extremist Groups Are Targeting Military Veterans for Recruitment. Does the ADF Owe Them a Duty of Care?
December 22, 2021
By Carli Kulmar and Michael Jensen Even before extremist group activity in Australia’s 2021 anti-lockdown protests was exposed, concern about right-wing extremism in Australia was on the rise. ASIO and the US annual threat estimate have noted right-wing extremism in Australia is on an upward trend. Ideological extremism now makes up 40% of the ASIO caseload. Our research at the University ...
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Preventing the Far-right Extremism “Wave” in Europe: Contemporary Policies and Future Trajectories
May 19, 2021
By Inés Bolaños Somoano Old threats, new threats Has the European Union “won” the fight against terrorism? Yes and no. Australia’s Institute for Economic & Peace’s Global Terrorism Index 2020 highlights how global deaths from terrorism have fallen for a fifth consecutive year, but also warns of a new terrorism “wave”: far-right attacks have increased ...