Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew
Far-right extremism transpires in virtual and physical space. In this study, we examine how the Australian far-right extremist group ‘True Blue Crew’ attempted to coordinate their offline activities with their social media activism. To this end, we conducted a thematic content analysis of administra...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/9/421 |
| _version_ | 1797482374126108672 |
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| author | Jade Hutchinson Muhammad Iqbal Mario Peucker Debra Smith |
| author_facet | Jade Hutchinson Muhammad Iqbal Mario Peucker Debra Smith |
| author_sort | Jade Hutchinson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Far-right extremism transpires in virtual and physical space. In this study, we examine how the Australian far-right extremist group ‘True Blue Crew’ attempted to coordinate their offline activities with their social media activism. To this end, we conducted a thematic content analysis of administrator posts and user comments present on the group’s Facebook page prior to and following an organised street rally in June 2017. This online analysis was partnered with ethnographic field work to gauge the perceptions of group members and supporters during the rally in Melbourne, Victoria. The results highlight the multi-dimensional and intimate manner in which online and offline contexts are coordinated to support far-right activism and mobilisation. This study offers an empirical account of how far-right attitudes, activism, and mobilisation transpired in Australia in the years prior to an Australian committing the Christchurch terror attack. It reveals a growing frustration within the broader far-right movement, leading to later strategic adaptation that can be interpreted as an early warning sign of an environment increasingly conducive to violence. This provides a more nuanced understanding of the context from which far-right terrorism emerges, and speaks to the importance of maintaining a level of analysis that transverses the social and the individual, as well as the online and the offline spaces. Implications for security and government agencies responses are discussed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:31:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ec0fb941da2c4c658ed58eaf4c830be7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:31:24Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-ec0fb941da2c4c658ed58eaf4c830be72023-11-23T18:56:28ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602022-09-0111942110.3390/socsci11090421Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue CrewJade Hutchinson0Muhammad Iqbal1Mario Peucker2Debra Smith3Department of Security Studies and Criminology, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, AustraliaApplied Security Science Partnership, Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC 8001, AustraliaInstitute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC 8001, AustraliaApplied Security Science Partnership, Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC 8001, AustraliaFar-right extremism transpires in virtual and physical space. In this study, we examine how the Australian far-right extremist group ‘True Blue Crew’ attempted to coordinate their offline activities with their social media activism. To this end, we conducted a thematic content analysis of administrator posts and user comments present on the group’s Facebook page prior to and following an organised street rally in June 2017. This online analysis was partnered with ethnographic field work to gauge the perceptions of group members and supporters during the rally in Melbourne, Victoria. The results highlight the multi-dimensional and intimate manner in which online and offline contexts are coordinated to support far-right activism and mobilisation. This study offers an empirical account of how far-right attitudes, activism, and mobilisation transpired in Australia in the years prior to an Australian committing the Christchurch terror attack. It reveals a growing frustration within the broader far-right movement, leading to later strategic adaptation that can be interpreted as an early warning sign of an environment increasingly conducive to violence. This provides a more nuanced understanding of the context from which far-right terrorism emerges, and speaks to the importance of maintaining a level of analysis that transverses the social and the individual, as well as the online and the offline spaces. Implications for security and government agencies responses are discussed.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/9/421Australiafar rightonline–offlinemediaactivismTrue Blue Crew |
| spellingShingle | Jade Hutchinson Muhammad Iqbal Mario Peucker Debra Smith Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew Social Sciences Australia far right online–offline media activism True Blue Crew |
| title | Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew |
| title_full | Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew |
| title_fullStr | Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew |
| title_full_unstemmed | Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew |
| title_short | Online and Offline Coordination in Australia’s Far-Right: A Study of True Blue Crew |
| title_sort | online and offline coordination in australia s far right a study of true blue crew |
| topic | Australia far right online–offline media activism True Blue Crew |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/11/9/421 |
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