How to 'reverse the spread of extremist narratives' pushing global 'conspiracy thinking': author

05 August 2023

Julia Ebner, author of Going Mainstream: How Extremists Are Taking Over, argues in a recent op-ed published by The Guardian that "as segments of the public have headed towards extremes, so has our politics" across the world.

In her op-ed, Ebner — who is based in London, United Kingdom — references the evident rise of far-right extremism within the United States, Germany, Austria and Sweden. However, when it comes to the question she often receives of "why the UK doesn't have a successful far-right populist party," the author replies "because it doesn't need to."

The author points to the fact that "A few years ago, the far-right Britain First claimed that 5,000 of its members had joined the Tory party," which has "increasingly departed from moderate conservative thinking and" turned "more towards radicalism," and that "Conservative MP Daniel Kawczynski was asked to apologise for attending the National Conservatism conference in Rome," which "is well known for attracting international far-right figures such as Italy's Giorgia Meloni, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and the hard-right US presidential candidate Ron DeSantis."

Despite this, Ebner suggests that we do not "simply have to accept the 'new normal'" of "democracies being taken over by far-right ideologies and conspiracy thinking" and that it is possible "to prevent and reverse the spread of extremist narratives" in a few ways.

The author of The Rage: The Vicious Circle of Islamist and Far-Right Extremism argues, "Ultimately, the next generation will vote conspiracy theorists in or out of power. Only they can reverse our journey towards the digital middle ages."

Ebnerwrites:

Young people should be helped to become good digital citizens with rights and responsibilities online, so that they can develop into critical consumers of information. National school curricula should include a new subject at the intersection of psychology and internet studies to help digital natives understand the forces that their parents have struggled to grasp: the psychological processes that drive digital group dynamics, online engagement and the rise of conspiracy thinking.

The author also suggests "Companies can play an important role in the fight for democratic values," considering, "for example, the Business Council for Democracy tests and develops training courses that firms can offer to employees to help them identify and counter conspiracy myths and targeted disinformation."

A researcher at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, Ebner reflects on the time when she once laughed at the "absurdity of" talk about "QAnon, the emerging internet conspiracy movement whose adherents believe that a cabal of Satan-worshipping elites runs a global paedophile network," but now, she notes:

In the US, dozens of congressional candidates, including the successfully elected Lauren Boebert, have been supportive of QAnon. The German far-right populist party Alternative für Deutschland is at an all-time high in terms of both its radicalism and its popularity, while Austria's xenophobic Freedom party is topping the polls. The recent rise to power of far-right parties such as Fratelli d’Italia and the populist Sweden Democrats bolster this trend.

Still, Ebner argues it is both possible and "essential to expose extremist manipulation tactics, call out politicians when they normalise conspiracy thinking and regulate algorithm design by the big technology companies that still amplify harmful content," narratives and ideologies.

Julia Ebner's full op-ed is available at this link (subscription required).

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