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Skinhead Super Mario Brothers: An Examination of Racist and Violent Games on White Supremacist Web Sites

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Abstract

This study uses qualitative interpretive textual analysis of video games found on hate and extremist Web sites to explore the proliferation of these games on the Internet and the extent they advocate violence and conflict or portray hate groups in a positive way to existing and potential members. In particular, this study examines the "enemies" targeted in these games and the level of violence directed toward these enemies. Results indicate the majority of games examined promoted extreme violence and conflict toward blacks and Jewish people. The games analyzed in this study required the player to violently kill, wound, and maim minorities in order to advance and were often modified versions of classic video games in which the original enemies were replaced with religious, racial and ethnic minorities. This study suggests that video games found on hate and extremist sites are intended to indoctrinate players with white supremacist ideology and allow individuals who already hold racist ideologies to practice aggressive scripts toward minorities which may later influence real world interactions.

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... Unethical mods. The presence of intensely violent games on websites affiliated with extremist movements, modded to replace enemies with minorities, is not a new phenomenon (Selepak, 2010). However, a new concern arises when mods depicting condemnable behaviourssuch as torture, paedophilia, or rapeor endorsing homophobic, racist, fascist, or antisemitic ideals are disseminated in open communities, frequented by a diverse audience of distinct age groups. ...
... It ought to be analysed whether there is a potential connection between engagement with such mods and realworld behaviour and attitudes. Are these mods merely attempts at 'humour' by random modders (Jessie and Nicolas, 2012) or do they function as recruitment and indoctrination strategies for extremist groups (Selepak, 2010)? ...
... Further concerns arise when considering the potential psychological impact for players who have experienced traumatic life events. While certain extremist movements websites may 'conscientiously' present content warnings due to the violent nature of the modded games they sharemainly with the intent of protecting them from legal actions - (Selepak, 2010), similar precautions are usually not observed in most of the platforms where these mods are disseminated: open communities with weak or minimal moderation, lacking filters and gatekeeping. These characteristics contribute to an environment where content may not be adequately screened or controlled, facilitating the dissemination of a wide range of mods to a large audience, including those that can be harmful or objectionable, analogous to those reported by Maisenhölder (2018). ...
Article
In parallel with the rapid growth of the digital games market, the modding phenomenon has been gaining momentum. Mod culture, a manifestation of the convergence and the remix cultures, emerges as a way to adapt digital games to the needs of their players and incorporate content from other media, such as books, movies, or series, into the game world. This systematic literature review aims to discuss the ethical considerations of modding by understanding its impact on the overall gaming experience and comprehending how players and game companies perceive and respond to modders’ motivations. 15 studies from various scientific fields were analysed. Overall, mods impact the gaming experience in a variety of ways, ranging from educational purposes to deeper social concerns. While modders find motivation to create mods stemming from a myriad of reasons, including leisure and self-improvement, the stance taken by game companies, gaming communities, and players tends to discourage them from developing new mods and deter new modders who aspire to contribute with creative content. In conclusion, it remains important to recognise that specific ethical dilemmas linked to mod culture require in-depth debate to reach a consensus. Furthermore, other aspects demand more stringent scrutiny to ensure that we can all benefit from the enriching playground of personal experimentation and exploration that modding offers in this contemporary era of convergence.
... The richness is increased when the medium can provide immediate feedback (possible in chat rooms and through online instant messaging), when there is a high number of cues and channels used (achievable through the online sharing of audiovideo files on YouTube or other channels), and when it is personalised (achievable in chat rooms, forums, and commentary websites for news websites and blogs). Research that examines the affordances of emerging ways to disseminate racist rhetoric focus on content on group's websites (Adams & Roscigno, 2005;Caiani & Parenti, 2010;Castle, 2012;Douglas et al., 2005;Flores-Yeffal et al., 2011;McCluskey, 2013;Tateo, 2006), including the use of interactive forums on these websites (Holtz & Wagner, 2009), and the use of video games on racist groups' websites (Selepak, 2010). Racist groups use these channels to reach, not only general, but also very specific audiences. ...
... Racist groups use these channels to reach, not only general, but also very specific audiences. For instance, the video games made available to the public from far-right groups' sites are often used as hidden opportunities to present a more attractive image of racist groups to existing and potential members, particularly targeting a younger audience (Selepak, 2010). ...
... Video games are also a popular medium in far-right and right-wing extremist circles. 470 A recent example is the video game Heimat Defender: Rebellion, developed by several organisations affiliated with the Identitarian Movement. 471 Whether bespoke video games can contribute to radicalisation processes is currently the subject of controversial discussions. ...
Chapter
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The video games industry in Europe has undergone significant transformations over the past five decades, evolving from a simple form of entertainment to a multifaceted economic powerhouse. This evolution reflects not only technological advancements but also changes in consumer behaviour and market dynamics. The industry's growth has positioned it as a major player in the global economy, with global revenues generated by players estimated at around USD 187 billion in 2024.2 The video games industry shares core professions with other creative sectors, such as design and development (studios), financing and production (publishers), and distribution. Its unique value chain is characterised by the fact that it integrates technological elements to the creative ones, such as console manufacture and software publishing for the development of game engines. This interplay has led to the emergence of major players in both European and global markets. The industry is now highly segmented, with a wide variety of genres, platforms, and economic models, with mobile gaming emerging as a dominant revenue-generating force alongside traditional console and PC gaming. Technological progress has driven the video games industry's evolution, from early consoles in the 1970s to modern developments like real-time 3D graphics, online multiplayer, and mobile gaming. The industry is now segmented by game genres—such as strategy, adventure, role-playing, and sports—and by support, ranging from consoles to mobile gaming. Economic models have also diversified, with free-to-play and subscription models complementing traditional one-off purchase systems. The rise of free-to-play models has reshaped revenue strategies, emphasising player retention over initial sales, and expanding the audience beyond traditional gamers. Various factors also suggest that the video games sector is subject to significant volatility. These range from regulatory changes, including the introduction of video game tax credits, such as in Canada and France, to retain talents and remain competitive; technological advancements, such as Games as a Service (GaaS) which have changed revenue models and game design; and market shifts, with the rise of cloud gaming services of major tech companies, followed by a period of significant acquisitions. Specific challenges include regulatory scrutiny of some economic models, such as hypercasual games and loot boxes, and government intervention, such as China's restrictions on the use of video games, impacting major companies like Tencent and NetEase. These factors highlight the industry's sensitivity to external forces and its rapid evolution in response to technological, regulatory, and market changes.
... Auch rechte und rechtsextreme Akteurinnen und Akteure entwickeln seit Jahrzehnten eigene Videospiele zur Verbreitung ihrer Ansichten (Selepak 2010 [10] binden, nicht aber um Radikalisierungsprozesse anzustoßen (Robinson/Whittaker 2021). Andere widersprechen und präsentieren erste Hinweise, dass propagandistische Videospiele möglicherweise radikalisierungsfördernd wirken könnten (Kowert et al 2022;Schlegel 2020a Hitler, Mitglied der Waffen-SS oder Neo-Nazi zu spielen" (Winkler 2023: 83). ...
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Ergebnisse einer Kurzexploration von 20 Gaming- und gaming-nahen Plattformen im Zuge des RadiGaMe Projektes. Erhältlich open access auf der RadiGaMe Webseite: https://www.radigame.de/fileadmin/DatenRadigame/Publikationen/RadiGaMe_Report1.pdf
... In particular, as is well known, hate groups use the internet to recruit and to proselytize. Many researchers have therefore examined the rhetoric and behaviour of hate groups as expressed via the internet (Peck, Ketchum, and Embrick 2011;Selepak 2010). The use of the internet to spread ideas (Douglas et al. 2005) It is emphasized in a systematic review done by Biluc and her team that certain organizations use hate speech to strengthen their cohesiveness, draw in new members, spread ideas, and promote a sense of belonging on a global scale. ...
Article
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This paper is qualitative case study of political prejudices on the internet. Negative social media remarks received by candidates in the 2020 New Brunswick provincial election were analyzed. The paper presents a typology for classifying such comments and offers a model for comprehending online prejudices, employing grounded theory techniques. Analysis of the comments reveals some of the challenges faced by contemporary political figures. Résumé Cet article est une étude de cas qualitative sur les préjudices politiques sur internet. Les remarques négatives sur les médias sociaux reçues par les candidats lors des élections provinciales du Nouveau-Brunswick en 2020 ont été analysées. En utilisant les techniques de théorisation ancrée, l'article présente une typologie pour classer de tels commentaires et propose un modèle pour comprendre les préjugés en ligne. L'analyse des commentaires révèle certains des défis auxquels sont confrontés les personnalités politiques contemporaines.
... Another key policy concern within the EU has been the intersection between video games and radicalisation. The use of games is not new; extremist groups have been creating and appropriating games for over 20 years (Robinson and Whittaker 2021;Selepak 2010;Lakomy 2017b). However, multiple recent terror attacks with strong links to games have increased this concern. ...
Technical Report
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... In addition to normalizing extremist ideology and evangelizing extremist views, white supremacists have designed videogames based on their worldviews (Khosravi, 2017) and made them readily available for download on popular white supremacist websites (Robinson & Whittaker, 2020). In these games, players often assume the role of a cisgender white male protagonist as he is tasked with violently eliminating perceived enemies coming in the form of people of color, people of different sexual orientations, and people of Jewish or Muslim faiths (Selepak, 2010). Some view these games as attempts at appealing to younger audiences (King & Leonard, 2016), while others perceive their function more in terms of community-building and mobilizing established members already familiar with the symbols, iconography, and underlying ideology (Robinson & Whittaker, 2020). ...
Article
Hate speech, harassment, and an increasing prevalence of right-wing extremism in online game spaces are of growing concern in the United States. Understanding trends in how and to what extent extremist groups utilize online gaming spaces is vital in taking action to protect players. To synthesize the current state of extant research and suggest future directions, we conduct a systematic review of the literature on right-wing extremism in videogames. We detail our search protocol, selection criteria, and analysis of the collected work, and then summarize the findings. Important themes include how and why extremists’ targeting of online game communities began, the role of Gamergate in this process, and the industry and market context in which such activities emerged. We describe the current nature of the problem, with extremist language and ideology providing a kind of on-ramp for radicalizing disenfranchised gamers. We conclude with a summary of responses from industry and legislators.
... Furthermore, the goal to recruit and radicalize new members is usually assumed in most studies, which has been pointed out by Robinson and Whittaker (2021) as doubtful at least. Ideological contents in those video games are oftentimes not explained, gameplay is usually of low quality, and the overall entertainment value for complete outsiders appears to be minimal at best (Robinson & Whittaker, 2021;Selepak, 2010). In short, most recent research looking at the role of video games in extremist environments concludes that these are more likely used to strengthen social bonds between already radicalized members to create virtual communities (Robinson & Whittaker, 2021). ...
Article
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As a consequence of numerous extreme right terror attacks in which the perpetrators posted their manifestos and attack life streams on online platforms adjacent to the video gaming community, as well as radicalized within that environment to a significant degree (e.g., Christchurch, New Zealand; Halle, Germany), increasing scholarly and policy maker interest is focusing on far-right radicalization and recruitment within online video game environments. Yet, little empirical insights exist about the specific engagement between right-wing extremists and their potential recruits on these platforms. This study provides findings from a qualitative exploration of unique German police investigation files for two children who radicalized on gaming platforms to become involved in extreme right criminal behavior, including the plotting of a terrorist attack. The study demonstrates the importance of online and offline factor interaction, especially regarding the role of familiar criminogenic factors, as well as the social-emotional bonding between potential recruits and extremist gamers created through shared gaming experiences that lead to high intensity extremist radicalization aimed at offline behavioral changes. The study did not find evidence for strategic organizational far-right recruitment campaigns, but rather multi-directional social networking processes which were also initiated by the potential recruits.
... Concerns around extremist music's ability to foster cross-national extreme-right sub-culture are similar to the growing concern surrounding the nebulous catch-all term "video games." While some material can be seen about pointedly "extreme-right" video games from the early 2000s (e.g., Ethnic Cleansing, Ghetto Blaster, Racial Holy War, etc.) (Selepak, 2010), the majority of focus in the 2010s has shifted to recruitment through already-established video game franchises with an online player base (Daniels & LaLone, 2012). This readily available pool of players from across the globe creates a fertile ground for would-be recruiters to ingratiate themselves within a community to determine who might be open to ideations of a more extreme variety (Lombard, 2007). ...
Chapter
In the early morning of July 2, 2020, 46-year-old Manitoban Corey Hurren drove his pickup truck through the front gates of Rideau Hall in Ottawa. There, he picked up five of his loaded guns and wandered around the property until confronted by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers, who diffused the situation and convinced Hurren to surrender peacefully after 90 minutes (Humphreys in Correy Hurren on Rideau Hall Attack: ‘I Figured as Soon as I Got on the Property, I Would Get Shot Down’. National Post, 2021). During the aftermath of the event, it was revealed that Hurren was an avid conspiracy theorist and anti-COVID-19COVID-19 activist who dabbled in and consumed online content from far-rightFar-rightwebsitesWebsitesand social mediaSocial media.
... The games were often modified versions of classic videogames in which the original enemies were replaced with religious, racial and/or ethnic minorities. Their main purpose is to indoctrinate players with white supremacist ideology and allow those who already hold racist ideologies to practice aggressive scripts toward minorities online, which may later be acted upon offline (Selepak, 2010). It should be noted that some experimental social psychologists show that cumulative violent videogames can increase hostile expectations and aggressive behavior (Hasan, Bègue, Scharkow & Bushman, 2013). ...
Article
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The fight against violent extremism and terrorism has taken a technological turn. In the age of instant gratification, terrorists use the internet as a propaganda tool to recruit, disseminate, mobilize and train people to perpetrate crimes. Although many extremist groups are ideologically and strategically antisocial media, some maintain a strong presence on this platform either directly or through supporters. Youth and Violent Extremism Online examine how terrorists use the Internet to disseminate propaganda and radicalize new recruits. In this anthology encompassing various topics, the author sport a mix of academia and practical experience, all seeking to examine, understand, and offer solutions for society to cope with an ever-changing phenomenon. Acts of terrorism worldwide have challenged our ability to understand the radicalization phenomenon and, most importantly, to generate the knowledge needed to make sense of such acts and to prevent them. Research has become a valid tool for understanding radicalization, constructing collective intelligence, and taking practical steps so as to enable sharing of expertise on this topic. One such area of knowledge-building is the investigation of the role of internet, and social media in particular, in violent radicalization processes and terrorism. This study adopted a robust approach of systematic literature search using the Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) principles for literatures review studies. The paper therefore presents some unique findings on how violent extremism purposely targeting youth online can be curtailed. The results show that terrorists have used the internet particularly social media sites such as Facebook, twitter, video games and dedicated websites to radicalize, recruit and train young people.
... These websites construct a path between and within gangs, and attract individuals who are curious or sympathetic to the content displayed on the website. Hence, the websites are used for recruitment and propaganda materials (Corb, 2011) such as music scores and video games which are sold to gang members and non-gang members who browse the sites (Reid & Chen, 2002;Selepak, 2010;Zhou et al., 2005). Websites are also used to organize drug distribution, coordinate attacks among gang members, and scout out new territories (Pyrooz, Decker, & Moule, 2015). ...
Article
Although the field of gangs is well studied, information regarding the way gangs may use or misuse music for different needs is sparse. The aim of this systematic review is to gather descriptive and empirical information to ascertain the important roles rap music possesses within gang life. This review suggests five main functions of rap used within gangs with an emphasis on the subgenre of gangsta rap. First, rap facilitates antisocial behavior by reinforcing such messages in its lyrics. Second, its deviant lyrics serve as a reflection of the violent reality experienced in many urban ghetto communities. Third, it operates as a means for constructing individual and collective identity, as well as resistance identity. Fourth, it functions as an educating force by teaching its members how to act and respond in the urban ghetto. Finally, rap glorifies gang norms among newcomers and successfully spreads its values to the general population.
... Contemporary recruitment and propaganda dissemination strategies have expanded beyond local or regional audiences to whole countries and continents, and have advanced in technological complexity and appeal (Burris et al., 2000;Reid & Chen, 2002;Zhou et al., 2005). Indeed, web access has facilitated new methods of recruitment and propaganda dissemination, including the creation of online video games and the merchandising of music and literature (Dawson & Hennebry, 1999;Gerstenfeld et al., 2003;Selepak, 2010). While these methods are largely passive, relying on online social or ideological homophily, web-based recruitment and propaganda is troubling because it can facilitate or reinforce radicalized beliefs without human contact and promote "lone wolf" radicalized behaviors (Spaaij, 2010). ...
Article
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Crime and deviance reflect the dynamic nature of social life. The Internet has changed opportunities for crime and deviance, much as it has changed other aspects of social life. Accompanying the movement of offending and victimization to the Internet has been the expansion of deviant groups—including gangs—into online settings. Drawing from web-facilitated and web-enhanced classifications of online deviant behavior and identity, we extend the study of offending, gangs, and gang membership to online settings. Using data gathered in five cities from 585 respondents, including 418 current and former gang members, we study general online routine activities, online criminal and deviant behaviors, and gang-related online behaviors and processes. Based on our results, we arrive at three main conclusions: (1) gang members use the Internet and social networking sites as much, if not more, than their nongang counterparts, (2) gang members have a greater overall propensity for online crime and deviance than former and nongang respondents, based on our multivariate multi-level item response theory models, (3) the Internet is rarely used to further the instrumental goals of gangs, instead appealing to the symbolic needs of gangs and gang members. We conclude by discussing the conceptual and policy implications of these findings in relation to online activities of offenders and deviant groups.
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und sich von einer reinen Unterhaltungsbranche zu einem vielseitigen Wirtschaftsfaktor entwickelt. Diese Entwicklung spiegelt nicht nur technologische Fortschritte wider, sondern auch Veränderungen im Verbraucherverhalten und in der Marktdynamik. Das Wachstum der Branche hat sie zu einem wichtigen Akteur in der Weltwirtschaft gemacht, wobei die von den Markteilnehmern weltweit erzielten Einnahmen im Jahr 2024 auf rund 187 Milliarden USD geschätzt werden. 2 Die Videospielindustrie hat die gleichen Kernberufe wie andere kreative Sektoren, z. B. Design und Entwicklung (Studios), Finanzierung und Produktion (Publisher) und Vertrieb. Ihre einzigartige Wertschöpfungskette zeichnet sich dadurch aus, dass sie technologische Elemente mit kreativen verbindet, wie zum Beispiel die Herstellung von Konsolen und das Software-Publishing für die Entwicklung von Spiel-Engines. Dieses Zusammenspiel hat dazu geführt, dass sowohl auf dem europäischen als auch auf dem globalen Markt große Akteure entstanden sind. Die Branche ist heute stark segmentiert, mit einer großen Vielfalt an Genres, Plattformen und Wirtschaftsmodellen, wobei sich Mobile Gaming neben den traditionellen Konsolen- und PC-Spielen zu einer dominierenden, umsatzstarken Kraft entwickeln. Der technologische Fortschritt hat die Entwicklung der Videospielindustrie vorangetrieben, von den ersten Konsolen in den 1970er Jahren bis hin zu modernen Fortschritten wie Echtzeit-3D-Grafik, Online-Multiplayer und Mobile Gaming. Die Branche ist heute nach Spielgenres - wie Strategie, Abenteuer, Rollenspiel und Sport - und nach Plattformen - von Konsolen bis hin zu mobilen Geräten - unterteilt. Auch die Wirtschaftsmodelle haben sich diversifiziert, wobei Free-to-Play- und Abonnementmodelle die traditionellen auf einem einmaligen Kauf beruhenden Systeme ergänzen. Der Aufstieg von Free-to-Play-Modellen hat die Einnahmestrategien verändert, indem er den Folus auf die Spielerbindung anstelle der anfänglichen Verkäufe legt und das Publikum über traditionelle Gamer hinaus erweitert. Verschiedene Faktoren deuten darauf hin, dass die Videospielbranche erheblichen Schwankungen unterworfen ist. Diese reichen von regulatorischen Änderungen wie der Einführung von Steuergutschriften für Videospiele beispielsweise in Kanada oder Frankreich, um Talente zu halten und wettbewerbsfähig zu bleiben, über technologische Fortschritte wie Games as a Service (GaaS), die Einnahmemodelle und Spieldesign verändert haben, bis hin zu Marktverschiebungen mit dem Aufkommen von Cloud-Gaming-Diensten durch große Technologieunternehmen, gefolgt von einer Phase bedeutender Übernahmen. Zu den besonderen Herausforderungen gehören die regulatorische Kontrolle einiger Wirtschaftsmodelle wie Hypercasual Games und Lootboxen sowie staatliche Eingriffe wie die chinesischen Nutzungsbeschränkungen für Videospiele, von denen große Unternehmen wie Tencent und NetEase betroffen sind. Diese Faktoren verdeutlichen die Empfindlichkeit der Branche gegenüber externen Kräften und ihre rasche Entwicklung als Reaktion auf technologische, regulatorische und marktbezogene Veränderungen.
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présentation détaillée de la chaîne de valeur des jeux vidéo
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Der Impuls gibt Einblicke in die Aneignung von Spielekultur durch extremistische Akteur*innen im Phänomenbereich “Islamistischer Extremismus”. Anhand von Beispielen wird nachgezeichnet, wie Islamist*innen versuchen, digitale Spiele für ihre Zwecke zu instrumentalisieren. Zudem werden Empfehlungen zur Adressierung von Islamismus im Kontext digitaler Spielekultur ausgesprochen.
Chapter
In the current chapter, the authors explore the growing concerns around a globalized extreme-right movement. Discussion of the contradiction between the ideological principles of the global extreme-right and actual operational practices as well as an overview of the recent trends in the transnational spread of extreme-right ideology and violence is discussed. Looking at the cases of individuals like Brenton Tarrant and Philip Manshaus as well as the online spaces they operated within prior to their arrest offers further insights into the online ecosystem of the globalizing extreme-right. Finally, the authors utilize a modification of Moghadam’s classification of collaboration to observe the potential means of coordination between extremist groups (high-end or low-end collaboration). The authors conclude that while there is some merit to certain concerns of a globe-spanning threat, the current ecosystem of the extreme-right does not seem to be indicative of a rapidly increasing trend but rather a proliferation of shared ideological and cultural trends. Further studies are recommended to observe the potential reasonings a global convergence has not been seen more pointedly in the case of the global extreme-right.
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The changing character of armed conflict, combined with the transformation of the global media landscape, has fundamentally altered the experience of war for Western audiences. Although physically distanced from its cost to a historically unprecedented degree, the virtual proximity of the average citizen to war has never been closer. Military first-person shooter (FPS) gaming is a critical component of this dynamic, functioning as the principle means through which to consume and interact with war for a large and growing segment of the population. This influence is problematic. Although exceptions exist, military FPSs typically both reflect and sustain the “war is hell” myth: a conviction, reinforced through interactive gameplay, that the rules of war cannot, and indeed should not, apply to the battlefield. We argue that a more complete and nuanced integration of the laws of war into this medium would help shift popular understandings of armed conflict, and the legal restraints imposed on it, in a more positive direction and, at the same time, allow game designers to better fulfil their commitment to a “realistic” depiction of the battlefield.
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This dissertation investigates the production of parodic digital games performed by the developer CyberGamba, and it's yours possible relations with carnivalization and the anthropophagic movement. The production company - founded on São Paulo - created a series of digital games appropriating the universe of the television-show Chaves, intertwined with other works developed by the digital games industry. This present research is structured as follows: initially we will broach theoretically the digital games and their dynamics of creation and modification; in the next section we will dedicate ourselves to the concepts of carnivalization, approaching anthropophagy and contextualizing the production of CyberGamba. Finally, we will analyze the development of the developer and investigate the polyphony established between the examined works. The methodological strategy of a case study in digital games followed in with the works of Robert Yin and Espen Aarseth, collaborating the auctors with the plan addressed in this research and contributing to the non-linear analyses of the works surveyed. Finally, São Paulo's productions proved to be carnivalized research objects, structuring new dialogues, clarifying the powers and unveiling problems and tensions arising from the realized polyphony.
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The selective bibliography presented here focuses on interdisciplinary research developed over the past 6 years on three major themes for the prevention of radicalization, violent extremism and online hate speech. We wanted to gather in one bibliography at a time: • Research that describes and understands the processes of online radicalization, encompassing terrorist propaganda, extremist activism and online recruitment processes. • Research that promotes the construction of conceptual, technical, and methodological tools for the analysis and characterization of hate and extremist discourse. • Evaluative research on counter-discourse or counter-narrative deployment policies by seeking to take stock of evaluations, impact measures and innovations. • Technological research using big datas, datasphere analysis, development of effective action tools to fight online terrorism and online extremism. We are aware that this list is dated from 2015 to 2021. We strive to describe each result and provide a comprehensive literature review that selects the best research advances. We hope you find this bibliography useful in answering the three key social questions when addressing these areas: A) Are you sure that the digital world has become a space for radicalization and extremist recruitment? B) But how can we limit, on a regular basis, these dangers on the Internet? C) But is the fight possible? How to act on a daily basis.
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Social Media and Democracy - edited by Nathaniel Persily September 2020
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Despite calls from governments to clamp down on violent extremist material in the online sphere, in the name of preventing radicalisation and therefore terrorism research investigating how people engage with extremist material online is surprisingly scarce. The current paper addresses this gap in knowledge with an online experiment. A fictional extremist webpage was designed and (student) participants chose how to engage with it. . A mortality salience prime (being primed to think of death) was also included. Mortality salience did not influence engagement with the material but the material itself may have led to disidentification with the ingroup. Whilst interaction with the material was fairly low, those that did engage tended to indicate preference for hierarchy and dominance in society, stronger identification with the ingroup, higher levels of radicalism, and outgroup hostility. More engagement with the online extremist material was also associated with increased likelihood of explicitly supporting the extremist group. These findings show that indoctrination, socialisation, and ideology are not necessarily required for individuals to engage attitudinally or behaviourally with extremist material. This study is not conducted on the dependent variable, therefore shedding light on individuals who do not engage with extremist material.
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Does social media lead vulnerable individuals to resort to violence? Many people believe it does. And they respond with online censorship, surveillance and counter-speech. But what do we really know about the Internet as a cause, and what do we know about the impact of these reactions? All over the world, governments and Internet companies are making decisions on the basis of assumptions about the causes and remedies to violent attacks. The challenge is to have analysis and responses firmly grounded. The need is for a policy that is constructed on the basis of facts and evidence, and not founded on hunches – or driven by panic and fearmongering. It is in this context that UNESCO has commissioned the study titled Youth and Violent Extremism on Social Media – Mapping the Research. This work provides a global mapping of research (mainly during 2012-16) about the assumed roles played by social media in violent radicalization processes, especially when they affect youth and women. The research responds to the belief that the Internet at large is an active vector for violent radicalization that facilitates the proliferation of violent extremist ideologies. Indeed, much research shows that protagonists are indeed heavily spread throughout the Internet. There is a growing body of knowledge about how terrorists use cyberspace. Less clear, however, is the impact of this use, and even more opaque is the extent to which counter measures are helping to promote peaceful alternatives. While Internet may play a facilitating role, it is not established that there is a causative link between it and radicalization towards extremism, violent radicalization, or the commission of actual acts of extremist violence.
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The following paper addresses the importance of the Internet in supporting rightwing extremist objectives. More specifically, this paper will examine Internet facilitation of information sharing, fundraising, social networking and recruitment, publicity, and risk mitigation. Specific tactics under investigation include, but are not limited to, the use and creation of electronic bulletin boards, the widespread adoption of multimedia technologies to attract children and teenagers, and the ever increasing use of writing and speaking in code. Given recent growth trends concerning group membership, it is imperative that Internet usage by these groups be exploited for research and intelligence purposes.
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The Internet connects people from different parts of the world in a way that no other technological innovation can. Extremists and hate mongrels use the Internet to access a potential audience of millions and to create a breeding ground for hate. In recent years, White supremacist organizations use chat rooms and Internet broadcasts to highlight a “racist double standard” and to promote racist ideologies. The influence of White supremacy is understudied and often ignored in communication studies on Whiteness and race. This study examines White supremacist discourse to show how it frames people of African descent using blatantly racist and offensive stereotypical overgeneralizations that set foundations of Whiteness ideology. I argue that this discourse aids our understanding of the contemporary constructions of both White and Black identities in the contemporary United States by showing how constructions of racist representations are integral to systems of White privilege.
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This study investigated the self-enhancement strategies used by online White supremacist groups. In accordance with social identity theory, we proposed that White supremacist groups, in perceiving themselves as members of a high-status, impermeable group under threat from out-groups, should advocate more social conflict than social creativity strategies. We also expected levels of advocated violence to be lower than levels of social conflict and social creativity due to legal constraints on content. As expected, an analysis of 43 White supremacist web sites revealed that levels of social creativity and social conflict were significantly greater than were levels of advocated violence. However, contrary to predictions, the web sites exhibited social creativity to a greater extent than they exhibited social conflict. The difference between social creativity and social competition strategieswas not moderated by identifiability. Results are discussed with reference to legal impediments to overt hostility in online groups and the purpose of socially creative communication.
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During the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan expanded to the northeastern United States, where it confronted Franco-American Catholics throughout Maine. In response, this ethnic population modeled an appropriate resistance to the KKK's unyielding message of Americanism and nativism, helping to precipitate the demise of this reactionary mass movement.
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“[Trials are] about individual culpability, not about the system as a whole. Trials set up an ‘us versus them’ dynamic. A trial is not about our complicity. It makes it look like they’re guilty, not us.” One of the Eisenhower Commission’s primary targets was the Ku Klux Klan, linked at that point to hundreds of acts of racial terror perpetrated by some of its approximately 17,000 dues-paying members. In 1964, the FBI had identified seventeen independent “Klans”—the largest of which, by far, was the United Klans of America. Billy Flowers, an Exalted Cyclops of the Johnston County chapter of the UKA, stands in front of his billboard on the outskirts of Smithfield, North Carolina, photographed by Pete Young, courtesy of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library. On June 21, 2005, exactly forty-one years after the murder of Civil Rights workers James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman in Neshoba County, Mississippi, former Ku Klux Klan member Edgar Ray Killen was convicted on manslaughter charges for those crimes. The national press widely framed the outcome of his high-profile trial as belated justice served, as well as a vehicle for broader closure and redemption for the community. But, for a crime allegedly perpetrated by at least twenty-one people—including the county Sheriff, who had openly, and successfully, campaigned on his ability to sternly “cope” with the state’s influx of “racial agitators”—not everyone found the verdict entirely satisfying. David Dennis, who was a central figure in the 1964 Freedom Summer project that had brought Schwerner and Goodman to Mississippi, has consistently argued that the murders were, in truth, a statewide conspiracy to deny basic rights to African Americans. Ben Chaney, James’s brother, similarly spoke of the need to recognize that “rich and powerful” elements associated with the plot continue to escape the reach of the law. Voices in the activist legal community have echoed this call, referring to these far-reaching networks of culpability as the “matrix of involvement.”1 While additional trials for others directly implicated in the murder plot could help untangle that matrix by forcing the accused to be accountable for their actions, the redemptive potential of the legal process appears to be more limited. A criminal trial, by its very nature, focuses on the narrow question of whether a standard of proof has been met related to a person’s involvement in a particular act. By holding up such individual unrepentant Klan members such as Killen as the only “real” villains, we achieve a facile, and ultimately false, closure. Historian Renee C. Romano has argued that these men, when regarded as “‘embarrassing relics of a shameful past’ . . . become almost like displays in a museum case, to be dusted off for their national display in these trials. By emphasizing how far we’ve come since [that era] and how very different these men are from ‘us,’ the trials . . . suggest that the nation has fully reckoned with the racial crimes of the past.”2 This artificial partitioning between then and now becomes more insidious when perpetrators are viewed as representative of a category almost entirely separable from the population at large. As prosecutors consistently painted Killen—and by extension the Klan—as an evil redneck disconnected from the prevailing mainstream in Neshoba County or the white South generally, his trial shed little light on the matrix of involvement, obscuring the Klan’s role in the community, as well as the institutional conditions that fostered its appeal during that time. Legal scholar Martha Minow defines this problem in more general terms: “Justice may call for truth but also demands accountability. And the institutions for securing accountability—notably, trial courts—may impede or ignore truth.”3 But what are the alternatives? How can a more serious consideration of racist elements like the KKK serve as a vehicle for a more complete conception of justice, focused on engaging with broader truths, facilitating community-level reconciliation, and ensuring that future abuses will not be tolerated? Any attempt to expand the judicial system’s narrow conception of culpability must...
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Public access cable channels, remnants of competitive cable franchise battles, are often in the center of heated controversy over allowance of utterances that are at sharp odds with community values. This article reiterates that broad public discussion is both a legal and a philosophical mandate in this country, concluding that more harm than good emerges from preventing groups from airing their opinions. The opportunity is always available for countering messages that have been aired.
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In recent years students of extreme right politics have called on political scientists to adopt an actor-orientated approach. Despite such calls, scholars remain reluctant to engage directly with party members, activists and leaders on an empirical basis. Implicit in the literature is the view that right-wing extremists are unwilling to engage with academic research. Drawing from a study focused on activists throughout England and Wales this article argues that such assumptions are misplaced. Furthermore, the findings of recent actor-orientated studies not only stand in marked contrast to ‘traditional’ interpretations of right-wing extremists but also provide a far richer understanding of the internal movement ‘life’.
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Extremists, such as hate groups espousing racial supremacy or separation, have established an online presence. A content analysis of 157 extremist web sites selected through purposive sampling was conducted using two raters per site. The sample represented a variety of extremist groups and included both organized groups and sites maintained by apparently unaffiliated individuals. Among the findings were that the majority of sites contained external links to other extremist sites (including international sites), that roughly half the sites included multimedia content, and that half contained racist symbols. A third of the sites disavowed racism or hatred, yet one third contained material from supremacist literature. A small percentage of sites specifically urged violence. These and other findings suggest that the Internet may be an especially powerful tool for extremists as a means of reaching an international audience, recruiting members, linking diverse extremist groups, and allowing maximum image control.
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U.S. Domestic extremist groups have increased in numbers and are intensively utilizing the Internet as an effective tool to share resources and members with limited regard for geographic, legal, or other obstacles. Researchers find that monitoring extremist and hate groups' Web sites, and analyzing their usage and content have become time consuming and challenging. In response, this study describes the development of automated or semi- automated methodologies for capturing, classifying, and organizing domestic extremist Web site data and using them for analysis. We found that by analyzing the hyperlink structures and content of domestic extremist Web sites and constructing social network maps, their inter-organizational structure and cluster affinities could be identified. Such analysis results could help experts in terrorism, law-reinforcement, intelligence, and policy-making domains better understand the domestic extremist phenomena and eventually boost our national security.
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Cartoons published in the weekly magazine New Yorker during the years 1946–87 were analyzed to determine how often blacks appeared as characters and whether the proportion of blacks portrayed had changed over time. Cartoons were further examined for possible changes in the styles of characterization of U.S. blacks since the post-Word War II period. Although black characters were extremely rare throughout the 42 years, the relative numbers of blacks depicted decreased with the passage of each time period. Styles of portraying black characters also changed markedly over the years, in keeping with the changing status of blacks in the United States. All cartoons from the earliest period presented U.S. blacks in stereotypic occupational roles, cartoons in the late 1960s and early 1970s were dominated by racial themes, and blacks appeared in “token” roles in the majority of cartoons from the most recent period investigated. In the entire 42 years, only a single U.S. black appeared as a main character in a cartoon in which race was completely irrelevant.
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This article relies upon structural symbolic interactionism and five of its organizing concepts (i.e. symbols, the definition of the situation, roles, socialization and role-taking, and the self) to put forth a novel conceptual framework for understanding the terrorist identity. In order to demonstrate the practical utility of the framework, applications to various terrorist groups around the globe are incorporated into the analysis. Overall, both the theoretical and application work help reorient the academic and practitioner behavioral science communities to the importance of culture, self, and society when investigating one's membership in and identity through militant extremist organizations. Given the unique approach taken by this article, several provisional implications are delineated. In particular, future research on terrorism, strategies linked to counter-terrorism, legal and public policy reform, and the relevance of utilizing a sociologically animated social psychology in the assessment of other forms of criminal behavior are all very tentatively explored.