Simone Long
Simone Long is working towards a PhD in Sociology at the University of Exeter – primarily based in the Centre for Computational Social Science (C2S2) – and holds an MRes in Social Research and a BSc in Criminology. Using a combination of computational and qualitative content analysis (in addition to other quantitative methods), their current research focuses on ideological cross-pollination between the online manosphere and the alt-right, exploring thematic similarities in user-generated discourse on extremist platforms. In addition to hypothesising the implications of these findings regarding the nature of the on and offline self – and the consequences of this regarding supremacist radicalisation – she also strives to provide empirical support for the conceptual treatment of these loosely connected networks of interest groups as biotopes forming self-sustaining and ever-evolving virtual supremacist ecosystems that, while somewhat ideologically distinct, substantially overlap and influence one another as in the natural environment.