Sick jokes and deadly intentions can often be difficult to disclose apart for those policing online cultureThe irony-laden vocabulary of the far-right online communities that spawned the terror attack in Christchurch on Friday makes it “extremely difficult” to distinguish a sick joke from a deadly serious threat,according to experts on the international far right and online information warfare.
References to “shitposting”, YouTube stars and the 17th-century Battle of Vienna are hallmarks of “that online culture where everything can be a joke and extremist content can be a parody (humorous or ridiculous imitation) and deadly serious all on the same page, or ” said Ben Nimmo,a researcher at the Atlantic Council. “Distinguishing between the two is extremely difficult. You have these communities who routinely practise extreme rhetoric as a joke, so its very easy to fit in whether you’re a genuine extremist.”Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com