‘We the people, not the sheeple’: QAnon and the transnational mobilisation of millennialist far-right conspiracy theories

Abstract

QAnon is a U.S.-based conspiracy theory that has been branded as far-right, yet it remains unclear which tenets of transnational far-right ideology are present within QAnon discourse and how adherents actively participate in the movement. To address this problem, a multi-phase content analysis on 1,000 tweets and 8kun posts explores the presence of transnational far-right tenets and millennialist themes within QAnon discourse. A posting frequency analysis of 37,782 tweets and 9,023 posts determines how QAnon adherents participate in precipitating a millennialist apocalypse, and how they can be disrupted. The results suggest that Australian QAnon communities integrate national themes and narratives to ground discourse in the Australian context, and communicate far-right tenets to identify a complex, interconnected left-wing deep state, that must be combatted through a coming apocalypse that QAnon adherents will participate in. This research develops new understandings of how far-right ideology can mould to fit different national contexts, can covertly manifest in discussion topics that are not explicitly far-right, and shows that millennialist movements can be both accelerated and disrupted using social media.

The Religious Genesis of Conspiracy Theories and Their Consequences for Democracy and Religion: The Case of QAnon

“…2 Another feature in relation to the questioning of reality and history is the problematisation of the seat of power (Boltanski 2014). Thus, CTs construct notions of power as crucial and, above all, emphasise its legitimacy (Arendt 1972), who has it and how it is used (Jones 2023): normally, CTs consider-like populism-that there are intruders who corrupt the system (Zizek 2020) and that power as a whole is corrupt. Moreover, in them, there is always a group or a person conspiring, i.e., doing something from the shadows (Hernáiz 2011), executing a direct and intentional plan (Popper 1948;Boltanski 2014) and designing an absolute collusion (Gallo 2019) and secret plot (Pigden 1995;Knight 2003;Hernáiz 2009;Barkun 2013;Boltanski 2014;Douglas et al 2019;Douglas 2021;Cunningham and Everton 2022) or hidden plot (Gallo 2019).…”

“…For them, the Apocalypse constitutes an approaching transformation, confrontation or cataclysmic event of momentous proportions, which is only noticed by a select few individuals. Moreover, they see this event as a battle between good (the in-group) and evil (the out-group), which often lies behind their justification of violence against members of the out-group (Adorno 1976;Berger 2015;Douglas 2021;Jones 2023).…”

“…In short, millenarian worldviews understand the world in terms of a struggle between good and evil and believe that this polarisation will continue until the coming of the Apocalypse, with evil finally defeated. In this, there is a difference with CTs, for while the latter, like millenarian worldviews, impose a dualistic worldview and locate and describe evil, they do not guarantee that good will triumph over evil, as millenarianism does (Jones 2023). On the other hand, the two 'faith systems'-millenarianism and CTs-are similar in that they embark on a moral crusade to solve the ills of society, in that they con-stitute a secularised response to the religious problem of Theodicy (Reche and Nefes 2022).…”

“…This explains, in part, why they generate prejudices towards particular groups-Jews, Muslims, Africans, LGTBI, Indians, for example- (Jones 2023) or display radical antigovernment attitudes (Douglas et al 2019). Moreover, these prejudices are characteristic of a type of mentality beyond empiricism, in as much as CTs interpret the world, the objects and phenomena that exist in it from a religious-metaphysical point of view and not according to the methodological standards of modern sciences; moreover, for conspiracy theorists, the results of science are part of the conspiracy, as are all those individuals or groups, including the media, who claim to refute a conspiracy with arguments (Bartlett and Miller 2010;Cunningham and Everton 2022).…”

“…From North America, QAnon has spread globally (Zihiri et al 2022), reaching countries such as Canada, Australia and the European Union (Jones 2023). Spain also has followers, whose main dissemination channel is Rafapal 1 , on Youtube, as well as political personalities from the Vox party 2 .…”