Blog
Jacinda Ardern Calls for ‘Ethical Algorithms’ to Combat Online Extremism. What This Means
May 26, 2021
By Nathalie Collins New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern has called for “ethical algorithms” to help stop online radicalisation. She made her call at the second summit of the “Christchurch Call” for action to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. The first Christchurch Call summit was convened by Ardern and French president Emmanuel Macron ...
Blog
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 ...
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Lone Actors in Digital Environments
May 12, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. By Alexander Ritzmann The Halle attacker – who killed two people, injured two and aimed at killing dozens more at a Synagogue on 9 October 2019 – was inspired and motivated by online manifestos. In addition, he streamed his attack online and posted his own manifesto online, ...
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Book Review: Jihadi Audiovisuality and Its Entanglements
May 5, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. By Eurasia Review A new book looks at the use of audiovisual media by jihadi groups and their supporters as well as at how these contributions are being countered Recent attacks by jihadists in Kabul, Dresden, Paris, and Vienna have brought the problem of Islamist terror back into ...
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Comparing the Online Posting Behaviors of Violent and Non-Violent Right-Wing Extremists
April 28, 2021
This article summarises a recent study published in Terrorism and Political Violence. By Ryan Scrivens, Thomas W. Wojciechowski, Joshua D. Freilich, Steven M. Chermak, and Richard Frank Despite the ongoing need for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers to identify and assess the online activities of violent extremists prior to their engagement in violence offline, little is ...
Blog
Automation in Online Content Moderation: In Search of Lost Legitimacy and the Risks of Censorship
April 21, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. By Charis Papaevangelou, Jiahong Huang, Lucia Mesquita, and Sara Creta At a recent workshop, JOLT Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) worked in multi-disciplinary teams to develop ideas for research projects that address a major issue surrounding media and technology. As the European Commission prepares to announce its much-anticipated ...
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How Ireland Can Stop the Rise of the Far-right
April 14, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. By Ross Frenett We all watched in horror as rioters inspired by fringe far-right conspiracy theories occupied the US Capitol building in January. The societal radicalisation on full display has caused many to ask what we in Ireland can do to push back against the extremists in ...
News
Watch the VOX-Pol Webinar on ‘Terrorism Informatics’
April 7, 2021
In March 2021, VOX-Pol published four Blog posts on the topic of ‘Terrorism Informatics’. The series covers A Framework for Researchers, Identifying Extremist Networks, Analysing Extremist Content, and Predicting Extremist Behaviour. The Blogs are written by Matti Pohjonen, a Researcher for a Finnish Academy-funded project on Digital Media Platforms and Social Accountability (MAPS) and VOX-Pol Fellow. Following the four ...
Blog
(Young) Women’s Usage of Social Media and Lessons for Preventing Violent Extremism
April 7, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. This Blog post summarises a conclusion paper from the EU’s Radicalisation Awareness Network.  By Jordy Krasenberg and Julia Handle  The perspective on the role of (young) women in extremism has changed over the last years towards better understanding of how women radicalise, how they are recruited, and ...
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Meet BreadTube, the YouTube Activists Trying to Beat the Far-right at Their Own Game
March 31, 2021
Want to submit a blog post? Click here. By Alexander Mitchell Lee YouTube has gained a reputation for facilitating far-right radicalisation and spreading antisocial ideas. However, in an interesting twist, the same subversive, comedic, satiric and ironic tactics used by far-right internet figures are now being countered by a group of leftwing YouTubers known as “BreadTube”. By making videos ...