Contextual
Resources
Once a government or tech company develops a definition of terrorism or violent extremism, it can be difficult to know how to apply these definitions to the variety of ways that terrorism and violent extremism manifests internationally and across online spaces.
This section of the site aims to highlight contextual resources on themes related to applying definitions to the online space. GIFCT funds the Global Network on Extremism and Technology (GNET) to bring forward actionable insights from experts and practitioners around the world to better inform and give context to tech companies, governments, practitioners and other stakeholders in this field. Insights are curated here under context-based themes.
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World Events
Coronavirus
Conspiracy Theory
World Events
While robust policies and legislation on defining terrorism and violent extremism might be in place, it can be difficult to know how definitions apply to major global events. In recent years there have been significant offline events that impact counterterrorism and counter-extremism efforts online. The following key events highlight where global researchers have analyzed the impacts of these moments on the online space, focussing on how terrorist and violent extremist actors are using platforms around these events and where solutions can be found.
Coronavirus
Coronavirus has had an ongoing and undeniable global impact on social, political, and economic structures. The pandemic and its related international lockdowns also saw increased activity from violent extremist networks, having a potential effect on processes of radicalization including from white supremacy, Islamist extremist, and misogyny-based violent extremist groups as well as violence-inducing conspiracy theory networks and accelorationist groups. Different extremist groups all sought to reinterpret or capitalize on the pandemic to suit their overall goals, affecting online trends and platform usage in different ways.
Conspiracy Theory
Conspiracy theories now exist across the far-right to far-left spectrum. Research shows te various effects in misleading the public. One such observable subcultural convergence of various conspiracy theories is against ‘the establishment,’ in this case liberal democracies. Among Spanish speaking audiences, conspiracy theories online are circulated and re-circulated in ways that are harder to identify and trace.
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24th February 2022Communication Technologies, Conspiracies, and Disinformation in Latin America: COVID-19 and BeyondDr. Alexis Henshaw
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25th November 2021COVID-19 Conspiricism and the Four Ds of Stochastic TerrorismDr. Gerard Gill
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08th September 2021Conspiracism, Extremism and the Battle Over Sacred ValuesDr. Gerard Gill
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08th April 2020The Coronavirus as a Means to an End: Extremist Reinterpretations of the PandemicManjana Sold, Clara-Auguste Süß