Discussing the Islamic State on Twitter
September 18, 2023
This book explores how ordinary Arab-speaking social media users have reacted to propaganda from the Islamic State, rather than how IS propaganda has targeted ordinary users, thus providing a change in perspective in the literature. The authors provide a comprehensive account of the evolution of the Arabic discourse on IS, encompassing all phases of the ...
Rethinking Social Media and Extremism
September 18, 2023
Terrorism, global pandemics, climate change, wars and all the major threats of our age have been targets of online extremism. The same social media occupying the heartland of our social world leaves us vulnerable to cybercrime, electoral fraud and the ‘fake news’ fuelling the rise of far-right violence and hate speech. In the face of ...
Salafi-Jihadism and Digital Media
September 18, 2023
This book explores the online strategies and presence of Salafi-Jihadi actors in the Nordic as well as the international context. Global Salafi-jihadism has been at the epicentre of international focus during the past decade. This book explores how the Swedish and other Nordic Salafi-jihadist sympathisers have used social digital media to radicalise, recruit, and propagate ...
The Network Illusion: How a Network-Centric Special Operations Culture Impedes Strategic Effect
September 18, 2023
America has often developed very impressive methods of waging war and protecting strategic interests, but all too often, its senior leaders are too optimistic about how much those methods can actually accomplish. The heart of U.S. national security challenges today is an ongoing erosion of American influence globally. What the U.S. now requires is a ...
Ethnographizing Islamic State’s Digital Community on Telegram Platform
September 18, 2023
Over time cyberspace has become an increasingly relevant environment for Islamic terrorism. The advent of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) in 2014 showed capability in exploiting jihadist propaganda and terror communication to radicalize and mobilize sympathizers globally. The digital arena has assumed a central role in the online jihadist movement. This centrality manifested itself in ...
The Online Extremist Ecosystem: Its Evolution and a Framework for Separating Extreme from Mainstream
September 18, 2023
In this Perspective, the authors introduce a framework for internet users to categorize the virtual platforms they use and to understand the likelihood that they may encounter extreme content online. The authors first provide a landscape of the online extremist “ecosystem,” describing how the proliferation of messaging forums, social media networks, and other virtual community ...
Salafi-Jihadism and Digital Media
September 18, 2023
While the interest in Salafi-jihadism and the digital arena is not a new phenomenon, a limited amount of research has focused on the specific strategies and narratives disseminated by local groups and online supporter communities at the national and international level. The editors provide a brief introduction to the issue of Salafi-jihadism and digital media ...
Feeling Terrified? The Emotions of Online Violent Extremism
September 18, 2023
This Element presents original research into how young people interact with violent extremist material, including terrorist propaganda, when online. It explores a series of emotional and behavioural responses that challenge assumptions that terror or trauma are the primary emotional responses to these online environments. It situates young people’s emotional responses within a social framework, revealing ...
The Incel Rebellion: The Rise of the Manosphere and the Virtual War Against Women
September 18, 2023
Emerging alongside the progression of women’s rights in the twenty-first century is the development of the men’s rights movement, parts of which have culminated into the contemporary ‘manosphere.’ Consisting of online communities that ascribe to misogynistic ideologies, which objectify, disparage, and dehumanise women, the manosphere also houses those who identify as involuntary celibate (incel). ...
Extremism in the Digital Era
September 18, 2023
This book constitutes a journey into the obscure field of sectarian-guided discourses of radical Islamist groups. It provides new insights into the ideological mechanisms utilized by such organizations to incite sectarian conflicts and recruit local and foreign guardians to their alleged cause. This book examines diverse aspects and dimensions of the discourses of Sunni-based ISIS ...