The alt-right pipeline (also called the alt-right rabbit hole) is a proposed conceptual model regarding internet radicalization toward the alt-right movement. It describes a phenomenon in which consuming provocative right-wing political content, such as antifeminist or anti-SJW ideas, gradually increases exposure to the alt-right or similar far-right politics. It posits that this interaction takes place due to the interconnected nature of political commentators and online communities, allowing members of one audience or community to discover more extreme groups. [1] [2] This process is most commonly associated with and has been documented on the video platform YouTube, and is largely faceted by the method in which algorithms on various social media platforms function through the process recommending content that is similar to what users engage with, but can quickly lead users down rabbit-holes. [2] [3] [4] The effects of YouTube's algorithmic bias in radicalizing users has been replicated by one study, [2] [5] [6] [7] although two other studies found little or no evidence of a radicalization process. [3] [8] [9]
Many political movements have been associated with the pipeline concept. The intellectual dark web, [2] libertarianism, [10] the men's rights movement, [11] and the alt-lite movement [2] have all been identified as possibly introducing audiences to alt-right ideas. Audiences that seek out and are willing to accept extreme content in this fashion typically consist of young men, commonly those that experience significant loneliness and seek belonging or meaning. [12]
The alt-right pipeline may be a contributing factor to domestic terrorism. [13] [14] Many social media platforms have acknowledged this path of radicalization and have taken measures to prevent it, including the removal of extremist figures and rules against hate speech and misinformation. [3] [12] Left-wing movements, such as BreadTube, also oppose the alt-right pipeline and "seek to create a 'leftist pipeline' as a counterforce to the alt-right pipeline." [15]
Use of the internet allows individuals with heterodox beliefs to alter their environment, which in turn has transformative effects on the user. Influence from external sources such as the internet can be gradual so that the individual is not immediately aware of their changing understanding or surroundings. Members of the alt-right refer to this radicalization process as "taking the red pill" in reference to the method of immediately achieving greater awareness in The Matrix . This is in contrast to the gradual nature of radicalization described by the alt-right pipeline. [14] [16] Many on the far-right recognize the potential of this radicalization method and actively share right-wing content with the intention of gradually radicalizing those around them. The use of racist imagery or humor may be used by these individuals under the guise of irony or insincerity to make alt-right ideas palpable and acceptable to newer audiences. The nature of internet memes means they can easily be recreated and spread to many different internet communities. [16] [17]
YouTube has been identified as a major element in the alt-right pipeline. This is facilitated through an "Alternative Influence Network", in which various right-wing scholars, pundits, and internet personalities interact with one another to boost performance of their content. These figures may vary in their ideologies between conservatism, libertarianism, or white nationalism, but they share a common opposition to feminism, progressivism, and social justice that allows viewers of one figure to quickly acclimate to another. [1] They often prioritize right-wing social issues over right-wing economic issues, with little discussion of fiscal conservatism. Some individuals in this network may not interact with one another, but a collection of interviews, internet debates, and other interactions create pathways for users to be introduced to new content. [2]
YouTube's algorithmic system for recommending videos allows users to quickly access content similar to what they have previously viewed, allowing them to more deeply explore an idea once they have expressed interest. This allows newer audiences to be exposed to extreme content when videos that promote misinformation and conspiracy theories gain traction. [14] [12] When a user is exposed to certain content featuring certain political issues or culture war issues, this recommendation system may lead users to different ideas or issues, including Islamophobia, opposition to immigration, antifeminism, or reproduction rates. [14] [18] Recommended content is often somewhat related, which creates an effect of gradual radicalization between multiple issues, referred to as a pipeline. [14]
At times, the platform will also recommend these videos to users that had not indicated interest in these viewpoints. [4] [18] Radicalization also takes place in interactions with other radicalized users online, on varied platforms such as Gab, Reddit, 4chan, or Discord. [14] Major personalities in this chain often have a presence on Facebook and Twitter, though YouTube is typically their primary platform for messaging and earning income. [12]
The alt-right pipeline mainly targets angry white men, including those who identify as incels, reflecting the misogyny of the alt-right. Harvard Political Review has described this process as the "exploitation of latent misogyny and sexual frustration through 'male bonding' gone horribly awry". The pipeline also targets people with self-doubt. [19]
The alt-right pipeline has been found to begin with the intellectual dark web community, which is made up of internet personalities that are unified by an opposition to identity politics and political correctness, such as Joe Rogan, Ben Shapiro, Dave Rubin, and Jordan Peterson. [2] The intellectual dark web community overlaps and interacts with the alt-lite community, such as Steven Crowder, Paul Joseph Watson, Mark Dice, and Sargon of Akkad. [2] This community in turn overlaps and interacts with the alt-right community, such as James Allsup, Black Pigeon Speaks, Varg Vikernes, and Red Ice. [2] The most extreme endpoint often involves fascism or belief in an international Jewish conspiracy, [16] though the severity of extremism can vary between individuals. [12]
Alt-right content on the internet spreads ideology that is similar to earlier white supremacist and fascist movements. The internet packages the ideology differently, often in a way that is more palatable and thus is more successful in delivering it to a larger number of people. [20] Due to the conservative nature of the alt-right, much of the ideology is associated with the preservation of traditional values and ways of living. This creates a susceptibility toward conspiracy theories about secret forces that seek to destroy traditional ways of life. [21]
The antifeminist Manosphere has been identified as another early point in the alt-right pipeline. [11] The men's rights movement often discusses men's issues more visibly than other groups, attracting young men with interest in such issues when no alternative is made available. Many right-wing internet personalities have developed a method to expand their audiences by commenting on popular media; videos that criticize movies or video games for supporting left-wing ideas are more likely to attract fans of the respective franchises. [12]
The format presented by YouTube has allowed various ideologies to access new audiences through this means. [12] The same process has also been used to facilitate access to anti-capitalist politics through the internet community BreadTube. This community was developed through the use this pipeline process to introduce users to left-wing content and mitigate exposure to right-wing content, [12] [15] though the pipeline process has been found to be less effective for left-wing politics due to the larger variety of opposing left-wing groups that limits interaction and overlap. [15] This dichotomy can also cause a "whiplash polarization" in which individuals are converted between far-right and far-left politics. [12]
The psychological factors of radicalization through the alt-right pipeline are similar to other forms of radicalization, including normalization, acclimation, and dehumanization. Normalization involves the trivialization of racist and antisemitic rhetoric. Individuals early in the alt-right pipeline will not willingly embrace such rhetoric, but will adopt it under the guise of dark humor, causing it to be less shocking over time. [14] This may sometimes be engineered intentionally by members of the alt-right to make their beliefs more palatable and provide plausible deniability for extreme beliefs. [16] [17] Acclimation is the process of being conditioned to seeing bigoted content. By acclimating to controversial content, individuals become more open to slightly more extreme content. Over time, conservative figures appear too moderate and users seek out more extreme voices. Dehumanization is the final step of the alt-right pipeline, where minorities are seen as lesser or undeserving of life and dehumanizing language is used to refer to people that disagree with far-right beliefs. [14]
The process is associated with young men that experience loneliness, meaninglessness, or a lack of belonging. [12] An openness to unpopular views is necessary for individuals to accept beliefs associated with the alt-right pipeline. It has been associated with contrarianism, in which an individual uses the working assumption that the worldviews of most people are entirely wrong. From this assumption, individuals are more inclined to adopt beliefs that are unpopular or fringe. This makes effective several entry points of the alt-right pipeline, such as libertarianism, in which ideologies attract individuals with traits that make them susceptible to radicalization when exposed to other fringe ideas. [10] Motivation for pursuing these communities varies, with some people finding them by chance while others seek them out. Interest in video games is associated with the early stages of the alt-right pipeline. [12]
Along with algorithms, online communities can also play a large part in radicalization. People with fringe and radical ideologies can meet other people who share, validate and reinforce those ideologies. Because people can control who and what they engage with online, they can avoid hearing any opinion or idea that conflicts with what their prior beliefs. This creates an echo chamber that upholds and reinforces radical beliefs. The strong sense of community and belonging that comes with it is a large contributing factor for people joining the alt-right and adopting it as an identity. [22]
Internet radicalization correlates with an increase in lone wolf attacks and domestic terrorism. [13] [23] The alt-right pipeline has been associated with the Christchurch mosque shootings, in which a far-right extremist killed 51 Muslim worshipers in Christchurch, who directly credited the Internet for the formation of his beliefs in his manifesto. [14] [24] The informal nature of radicalization through the alt-right pipeline allows radicalization to occur at an individual level, and radicalized individuals are able to live otherwise normal lives offline. This has complicated efforts by experts to track extremism and predict acts of domestic terrorism, as there is no reliable way of determining who has been radicalized or whether they are planning to carry out political violence. [14] [25] Harassment campaigns against perceived opponents of the alt-right movement are another common effect of radicalization. [14]
Many social media platforms have recognized the potential of radicalization and have implemented measures to limit its prevalence. High-profile extremist commentators such as Alex Jones have been banned from several platforms, and platforms often have rules against hate speech and misinformation. [12] In 2019, YouTube announced a change to its recommendation algorithm to reduce conspiracy theory related content. [12] [18] Some extreme content, such as explicit depictions of violence, are typically removed on most social media platforms. On YouTube, content that expresses support of extremism may have monetization features removed, may be flagged for review, or may have public user comments disabled. [3]
A September 2018 study published by the Data & Society Research Institute found that 65 right-wing political influencers use YouTube's recommendation engine—in concert with conventional brand-building techniques such as cross-marketing between similar influencers—to attract followers and radicalize their viewers into a particular right-wing ideology. [26] An August 2019 study conducted by the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais and École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne, and presented at the ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency 2020 used information from the earlier Data & Society research and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) to categorize the levels of extremism of 360 YouTube channels. The study also tracked users over an 11-year period by analysing 72 million comments, 2 million video recommendations, and 10,000 channel recommendations. The study found that users who engaged with less radical right-wing content tended over time to engage with more extremist content, which the researchers argued provides evidence for a "radicalization pipeline". [2] [5] [6] [7]
A 2020 study published in The International Journal of Press/Politics argued that the "emerging journalistic consensus" that YouTube's algorithm radicalizes users to the far-right "is premature." Instead, the study proposes a "'Supply and Demand' framework for analyzing politics on YouTube." [27]
A 2021 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found "no evidence that engagement with far-right content is caused by YouTube recommendations systematically, nor do we find clear evidence that anti-woke channels serve as a gateway to the far right." Instead, the study found that "consumption of political content on YouTube appears to reflect individual preferences that extend across the web as a whole." [8] A 2022 study published by the City University of New York found that "little systematic evidence exists to support" the claim that YouTube's algorithm radicalizes users, adding that exposure to extremist views "on YouTube is heavily concentrated among a small group of people with high prior levels of gender and racial resentment.", and that "non-subscribers are rarely recommended videos from alternative and extremist channels and seldom follow such recommendations when offered." [9]
Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered to be far outside the mainstream attitudes of society. It can also be used in an economic context. The term may be used pejoratively by opposing groups, but is also used in academic and journalistic circles in a purely descriptive and non-condemning sense.
Radicalization is the process by which an individual or a group comes to adopt increasingly radical views in opposition to a political, social, or religious status quo. The ideas of society at large shape the outcomes of radicalization. Radicalization can result in both violent and nonviolent action – academic literature focuses on radicalization into violent extremism (RVE) or radicalisation leading to acts of terrorism. Multiple separate pathways can promote the process of radicalization, which can be independent but are usually mutually reinforcing.
The American online video sharing and social media platform YouTube has had social impact in many fields, with some individual videos of the site having directly shaped world events. It is the world's largest video hosting website and second most visited website according to both Alexa Internet and Similarweb, and used by 81% of U.S. adults.
In news media and social media, an echo chamber is an environment or ecosystem in which participants encounter beliefs that amplify or reinforce their preexisting beliefs by communication and repetition inside a closed system and insulated from rebuttal. An echo chamber circulates existing views without encountering opposing views, potentially resulting in confirmation bias. Echo chambers may increase social and political polarization and extremism. On social media, it is thought that echo chambers limit exposure to diverse perspectives, and favor and reinforce presupposed narratives and ideologies.
Islamic extremism in the United States comprises all forms of Islamic extremism occurring within the United States. Islamic extremism is an adherence to fundamentalist interpretations of Islam, potentially including the promotion of violence to achieve political goals. In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, Islamic extremism became a prioritized national security concern of the U.S. government and a focus of many subsidiary security and law enforcement entities. Initially, the focus of concern was on foreign Islamic terrorist organizations, particularly al-Qaeda, but in the course of the years since the September 11 terror attacks, the focus has shifted more towards Islamic extremist radicalized individuals and jihadist networks within the United States.
Violent extremism is a form of extremism that condones and enacts violence with ideological or deliberate intent, such as religious or political violence. Violent extremist views often conflate with religious and political violence, and can manifest in connection with a range of issues, including politics, religion, and gender relations.
The manosphere is a diverse collection of websites, blogs, and online forums promoting masculinity, misogyny, and opposition to feminism. Communities within the manosphere include men's rights activists (MRAs), incels, Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW), pick-up artists (PUA), and fathers' rights groups. While the specifics of each group's beliefs sometimes conflict, they are generally united in the belief that society is biased against men due to the influence of feminism, and that feminists promote misandry, or hatred of men. Acceptance of these ideas is described as "taking the red pill", a metaphor borrowed from the film The Matrix.
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is a non-profit non-governmental organization that combats extremist groups "by pressuring financial support networks, countering the narrative of extremists and their online recruitment, and advocating for strong laws, policies and regulations".
/pol/, short for Politically Incorrect, is an anonymous political discussion imageboard on 4chan. As of 2022, it is the most active board on the site. It has had a substantial impact on Internet culture. It has acted as a platform for far-right extremism; the board is notable for its widespread racist, white supremacist, antisemitic, Islamophobic, misogynist, and anti-LGBT content. /pol/ has been linked to various acts of real-world extremist violence. It has been described as one of the "[centers] of 4chan mobilization", a title also ascribed to /b/.
Deradicalization refers to a process of encouraging a person with extreme political, social or religious views to adopt more moderate positions on the issues.
Online youth radicalization is the action in which a young individual or a group of people come to adopt increasingly extreme political, social, or religious ideals and aspirations that reject, or undermine the status quo or undermine contemporary ideas and expressions of a state, which they may or may not reside in. Online youth radicalization can be both violent or non-violent.
BitChute is an alt-tech video hosting service launched by Ray Vahey in January 2017. It describes itself as offering freedom of speech, while the service is known for hosting far-right individuals, conspiracy theorists, and hate speech. Some creators who use BitChute have been banned from YouTube; some others crosspost content to both platforms or post more extreme content only to BitChute. Before its deprecation, BitChute claimed to use peer-to-peer WebTorrent technology for video distribution, though this was disputed.
Incel is a term associated with an online subculture of people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one, and blame, objectify and denigrate women and girls as a result. The movement is strongly linked to misogyny. Originally coined as "invcel" around 1997 by a queer Canadian female student known as Alana, the spelling had shifted to "incel" by 1999, and the term later rose to prominence in the 2010s, following the influence of misogynistic terrorists Elliot Rodger and Alek Minassian.
A tradwife is a woman who believes in and practices traditional gender roles and marriages. Some may choose to take a homemaking role within their marriage, and others leave their careers to focus on meeting their family's needs in the home.
BreadTube or LeftTube is a loose and informal group of online personalities who create video content, including video essays and livestreams, from socialist, social democratic, communist, anarchist, and other left-wing perspectives. BreadTube creators generally post videos on YouTube that are discussed on other online platforms, such as Reddit.
Alt-tech is a collection of social networking services and Internet service providers popular among the alt-right, far-right, and others who espouse extremism or fringe theories, typically because they employ looser content moderation than mainstream platforms. The term "alt-tech" is a portmanteau of "alt-right" and "Big Tech". Starting around 2015, some prominent conservatives and their supporters began to use alt-tech platforms because they had been banned from other social media platforms. Alt-tech platforms describe themselves as protectors of free speech and individual liberty, which researchers and journalists have alleged may be a dog whistle for antisemitism and terrorism.
Algorithmic radicalization is the concept that recommender algorithms on popular social media sites such as YouTube and Facebook drive users toward progressively more extreme content over time, leading to them developing radicalized extremist political views. Algorithms record user interactions, from likes/dislikes to amount of time spent on posts, to generate endless media aimed to keep users engaged. Through echo chamber channels, the consumer is driven to be more polarized through preferences in media and self-confirmation.
Nonviolent extremism is the expression of extremist ideas through nonviolent means, without the use of terrorism or political violence. It can be contrasted with violent extremism. Nonviolent extremism manifests from the same ideologies as violent extremism, including right wing extremism, left wing extremism, and religious extremism. Much of the study of nonviolent extremism focuses on its potential to produce or incite violent extremism.
Alternative Influence: Broadcasting the Reactionary Right on YouTube is a 2018 report by researcher Rebecca Lewis published at the think tank Data & Society that performs network analysis on a collection of 65 political influencers on 81 YouTube channels. Lewis argues that this network propagates right-wing ideology.
Far-right political groups use mainstream social media platforms for communication, propaganda, and mobilization. These platforms include Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X and YouTube. By leveraging viral trends, entertaining content, and direct interaction, far-right groups aim to spread their political messages, recruit followers, and foster a sense of community. Such activities are part of broader political processes and activities that involve the organization and spread of political values and ideologies.