VOX-Pol is pleased to present a new report in the VOX-Pol publication series, titled How Extreme is the European Far-Right? Investigating Overlaps in the German Far-Right Scene on Twitter by Reem Ahmed and Daniela Pisoiu. The launch – in print and online – takes place at the final Lunch Briefing session on 12 November 2019 in Brussels.
About the Report
The aim of the report is to determine the overlaps apparent in the far-right scene on Twitter, and specifically, to ascertain the extent to which different groups on the scene are indeed talking about the same issues in the same way, in spite of apparent differences in tone and underlying ideologies. The authors utilise a mixed-methods approach: first, gaining a cursory insight into the extreme right-wing scene on Twitter across Europe; and then applying a detailed frame analysis to three selected groups in Germany to determine the implicit and explicit overlaps between them, thus complementing the quantitative findings to offer an in-depth analysis of meaning.
About the Authors
Reem Ahmed is a Researcher at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg (IFSH) working within the framework of VOX-Pol. She is also a PhD Candidate at the Albrecht Mendelssohn Bartholdy Graduate School of Law (AMBSL) at the University of Hamburg. Her dissertation examines responses to online extremism in the UK, Germany, and the EU and is funded by a scholarship awarded by the AMBSL. She has previously published in the area of radicalisation and online extremism, with a particular focus on the far right and violent jihadis. She holds an undergraduate degree in Politics from the University of Leeds and an MA in International Security from the University of Groningen.
Daniela Pisoiu is a Senior Researcher at the Austrian Institute for International Affairs (oiip), Vienna and a member of VOX-Pol. She completed her PhD at the University of St Andrews, Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence and has conducted fieldwork on the topic of radicalisation in Austria, Germany and France, as well as other European countries. She is the author of Theories of Terrorism: An Introduction (Routledge, 2017), Islamist Radicalisation in Europe: An Occupational Change Process (Routledge, 2011) and editor of Arguing Counterterrorism: New Perspectives (Routledge, 2014). Her fields of research include terrorism, radicalisation, extremism, comparative regional security, American and European foreign and security policy.
About the Launch
The report will be launched at the sixth and final 2019 Lunch Briefing Series, it will be live-streamed on our YouTube channel, and you can participate on Twitter using hashtags: #EUProtects and #LunchBriefing, and handles: @EU4BE and @VOX_Pol.
The Lunch Briefings are a joint venture between VOX-Pol and the European Commission Representation in Belgium. You can read more about the sessions and presenters HERE, and all of the sessions can be watched online on our YouTube channel HERE.
Accessing VOX-Pol Reports
All VOX-Pol reports are open-access. This report is available for download HERE.