Introduction The word “infodemic” was coined by the Word Health Organization (WHO) to describe the excess of information, usually false, on a particular problem, used to hinder the process of finding a solution. Even though not a recent phenomenon, in the unprecedented period that the world has been living in the last few months, the… Continue reading ““The media censorship”, free speech and the radical right: The case of Spain’s VOX party”
In a new report published by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) we sought to better understand how the ‘Great Replacement’ theory metastasised in recent years, growing and spreading rapidly across the globe. The concept, which was central to a document published by the perpetrator of the Christchurch terrorist attack, focuses on the perceived displacement… Continue reading “Twitter and the ‘Great Replacement’: New ISD Report shines light on #white genocide hashtag”
If we get it right, machine-learning could be useful in identifying hateful networks and building a complete picture of white extremist ecosystems as they emerge. In 25 April 2019, Vice Motherboard journalists Joseph Cox and Jason Koebler reported that during a recent Twitter company meeting a comment was made that: Twitter hasn’t taken the same… Continue reading “Content moderation and censorship: can we handle a double standard?”
Recently, the comedian posted a crude drawing of fascist leader Benito Mussolini and his mistress, Clara Petacci – disfigured and hung upside down as they were in their deaths. For years now, Jim Carrey, known for his cartoon-like facial expressions and raucous and pointed comedy, has been sharing his own satirical art on Twitter.… Continue reading “Jim Carrey, Mussolini and the politics of comics”
How should we study, present, and represent the radical right? Some from among the hitherto quiet observers speak up, in the interests of a broader conversation. A few weeks ago, part of the academic community on Twitter got into a heated discussion on the normalisation of radical right discourse. It all started when two much-followed… Continue reading “Reflections on the ‘open letter’ debate: a middle way to approaching the radical right?”
On October 10 2018, British anti-Muslim figurehead Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (AKA Tommy Robinson) caused uproar when he posted a video of himself with a group of young trainee soldiers online. The British Army quickly reacted to the incident, disavowing Yaxley-Lennon, and discharging one of the soldiers involved. Subsequently Yaxley-Lennon has hijacked this incident to promote his… Continue reading “The Ramifications of the #IAmSoldierX Campaign”
During the 2016-17 Home Affairs Select Committee on Radicalisation, Google claimed that, in 2014, they had removed over 14 million videos relating to different forms of abuse, including content that promoted violent extremism. They have now announced they will be employing an additional 10,000 staff as human moderators to take down videos and comments that… Continue reading “Corpus Linguistics and the Problem of Non-Violent Extremism”