3. Populism and mobilization

Mudde, Cas; Kaltwasser, Cristóbal Rovira

doi:10.1093/actrade/9780190234874.003.0003

Cited by 219 publications

(356 citation statements)

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“…“Lying press!” was used by the Nazis to agitate against Jewish and leftist newspapers (Gadinger, 2019), whereas “We are the People” was shouted during demonstrations in Eastern Germany in 1989 and 1990 (Reiher, 2015). These trademark phrases—and Pegida’s content in general—are in line with populist views of representing “the people,” opposing to “the corrupt elite” (Mudde & Kaltwasser, 2017, p. 4).…”

Section: The Right-wing Populist Movement Pegidamentioning

confidence: 59%

The Limited Influence of Right-Wing Movements on Social Media User Engagement

Schwemmer

2021

Social Media + Society

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This article generates new insights into the dynamic interplay between social media content generated by right-wing movements, user engagement, and the public attention movements receive. I argue that movement leaders seek to achieve high user engagement for utilizing mechanisms of information diffusion to increase both online and on-site mobilization. In a case study, I analyze the German right-wing movement Pegida, which uses Facebook for spreading its anti-Islam agenda online. Data from Pegida’s Facebook page are combined with news reports over a period of 18 months to measure activity on Facebook and in the public sphere simultaneously. Results of quantitative text and time series analysis show that Pegida cannot influence user engagement by simply creating more posts. Instead, it is the content of posts that matters. Moreover, findings highlight a strong connection between Facebook activities and the public sphere. In times of decreasing attention, the movement changes its social media strategy in response to exogenous shocks: Pegida resorts increasingly to radical mobilization methods by posting xenophobic content that is more likely to incite users to engage on Facebook.

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Section: The Right-wing Populist Movement Pegidamentioning

confidence: 59%

The Limited Influence of Right-Wing Movements on Social Media User Engagement

Schwemmer

2021

Social Media + Society

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“…Although this is not the focus of our article, it is important to underline that there are at least two reasons for this tendency to distrust experts, which nevertheless coexists with the massive use of experts and their knowledge in many private and public sectors 9 . The first reason, linked to the political process, is that some parties and some leaders support programmes and reforms that are based in varying proportions on nationalistic, populist, conservative and religiously inspired ideas ( 14 ). All these orientations tend to reject globalization, open economy and society, materialism, secularism, hierarchies of knowledge that exclude citizens from decision-making, progress as a primary objective, the importance of questioning and verifying one's deep-rooted convictions – in short, everything that is or appears to be the legacy of the scientific method and of the direct or indirect action of experts 10 .…”

Section: The State Of Affairs: Epistemic Authority Experts and Theimentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Experts in the Covid-19 Pandemic and the Limits of Their Epistemic Authority in Democracy

Lavazza

Farina

2020

Front. Public Health

129

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In the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic, medical experts (virologists, epidemiologists, public health scholars, and statisticians alike) have become instrumental in suggesting policies to counteract the spread of coronavirus. Given the dangerousness and the extent of the contagion, almost no one has questioned the suggestions that these experts have advised policymakers to implement. Quite often the latter explicitly sought experts' advice and justified unpopular measures (e.g., restricting people's freedom of movement) by referring to the epistemic authority attributed to experts. The main goal of this paper is to analyze the basis of this epistemic authority and the reasons why in this case it has not been challenged, contrary to the widespread tendency to devalue expertise that has been observed in recent years. In addition, in relation to the fact that experts' recommendations are generally technical and supposedly neutral, we note that in the COVID-19 crisis different experts have suggested different public health policies. We consider the British case of herd immunity and the US case of the exclusion of disabled people from medical care. These decisions have strong axiological implications and affect people profoundly in very sensitive domains. Another goal is, therefore, to argue that in such cases experts should justify their recommendations-which effectively become obligations-by the canons of public reason within the political process because when values are involved it is no longer just a matter of finding the “best technical solution,” but also of making discretionary choices that affect citizens and that cannot be imposed solely on the basis of epistemic authority.

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“…However, on their own such contextual drivers fail to explain how extremist political identification also occurs among parts of the majority populations (as witnessed in increased racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism and hate-crimes), and how the reaction to these societal factors is embedded within larger narratives and counter-narratives of contestations of belonging. Much contemporary research on migration, citizenship, and the emergence of the far right (Modood, 2006; Kinnvall & Nesbitt-Larking, 2011; Kinnvall, 2018, 2019; Mudde, 2017, 2019; Mudde & Kaltwasser, 2017; Müller, 2016), shows how people, communities, institutions and states are becoming increasingly concerned with defining and closing down community and national boundaries in response to actual or perceived threats against what they see as their culture, religion, tradition and nation. Here the attachment to a justifying ideology can provide a sense of belonging, rewarding personal and social ties, and increase status and self-esteem.…”

Section: Extremist Political Identificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Psychology of Extremist Identification

Kinnvall

Capelos²

2021

European Psychologist

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Following the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States, policy approaches to extremism have mainly focused on understanding the dynamics of religious-based extremism, such as Al-Qaeda and other violent Jihadist/ Islamist groups. Predominantly, the emphasis has been on mapping individual pathways into these particular forms of extreme mobilization. Attacks in Paris, Brussels, and Manchester, as well as in North Africa, Somalia, and Yemen confirm the value of this work in light of the continuing dominance of the security challenges posed by radical Islam, not least in relation to the rise of the so-called Islamic State, or ISIS. The large number of incidents in Europe and elsewhere have resulted in calls for counter-strategies to be modified or expanded, but also for greater resources to be devoted to understanding other forms of extremism, particularly those associated with extreme far right responses or ethnic nationalist ideologies. The economic crisis and its policy responses, along with migration, integration and asylum policies, have affected the relationship between populism and extremism in a fundamental and encompassing manner. The electoral successes of populist, Eurosceptic, and far right parties confirm such tendencies, showing the capacity of extremist discourses to mobilize constituencies against vulnerable groups (e.g., ethnic minorities and immigrants), other countries, and international institutions. Various versions of cultural nationalism have underpinned such mobilization, marked among other things by xenophobia, anti-Semitism, misogyny and Islamophobia, in turn fueling violence. The January 6, 2021 attack at the United States Capitol adds to this picture and lays bare a number of issues related to disinformation, polarization, and the challenge to democratic institutions.This special issue aims to widen the analysis of extremism to account for the unresolved puzzles that continue to plague practitioners, policy makers, and academics alike:

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3. Populism and mobilization

Cited by 219 publications

References 0 publications

The Limited Influence of Right-Wing Movements on Social Media User Engagement

The Limited Influence of Right-Wing Movements on Social Media User Engagement

The Role of Experts in the Covid-19 Pandemic and the Limits of Their Epistemic Authority in Democracy

The Psychology of Extremist Identification

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