The special issue of @cpsjournal.bsky.social “Back from the Brink: Countering Illiberalism in Liberal Democracies”, co-edited by myself and Isabela Mares, was just published. The issue includes 8 articles, many of which set new research agendas. A🧵w/overview 1/10
journals.sagepub.com/toc/CPS/curr...
Tomorrow 8 April I will be speaking at @europeatharvard.bsky.social about my latest work on countering illiberalism in liberal democracies
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ces.fas.harvard.edu/events/2026/...
Glad to see this out at @epsrjournal.bsky.social!
Using ESS data, Raquel Rego and I find that an anti-immigration stance is the strongest predictor of far-right sympathies among police and military personnel—similar to the general population.
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
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📣 New publication with the great @matthiasdilling.bsky.social in @prxjournal.bsky.social on the rise (and fall) of the Dutch NSC. Slow science meets fast-moving politics: while writing this, the party had risen - and fallen. Yet: it offers lessons on countering the far right: doi.org/10.1080/2474...
🥳Großartig! Herzlichen Glückwünsch liebe Sabine!
@tevoelker.bsky.social analysiert anhand semistrukturierter Interviews mit Redakteur*innen und Journalist*innen den zwischen Brandmauer und Anpassung changierenden medialen Umgang mit der AfD und identifiziert Faktoren für deren effektive Normalisierung:
doi.org/10.1080/2474...
🎉 New publication 😍 The 4th wave of the #farright is marked by #mainstreaming & #normalisation - but how can we distinguish between them? In our new article, @gefjonoff.bsky.social and I map the existing literature, introduce a conceptual framework & outline research avenues. doi.org/10.1017/S147...
Meet @tevoelker.bsky.social, one of our Visiting Scholars from
@wzb.bsky.social. Join her TODAY for a seminar on “Democratic Resilience: How Parties, Civil Society, and the Media Resist Far-Right Politics.”
🗓️ Feb 25 @ 2:00 - 3:15pm
🔗 ces.fas.harvard.edu/events/2026/...
With the upcoming state elections in different parts of Germany, I recommend this paper to all media practioners. This is not about blaming, but ultimately the article shows that journalists play a significant role in the perception of (& support for) far right parties:
Thank you so much Matthias!
Super timely and important paper on how the media cordon sanitaire crumbles in Germany 🔎
Thank you, Jonas!!
I thank the workshop participants "Responding to the demand? Voters’ grievances, PRR success, and mainstream party strategies" at Swansea University,WZB Conference “The Future of Democracy?” & @wzb.bsky.social for open access support &my outstanding research assistant, Mika Bauer.
I am deeply grateful to all interviewees for sharing their time& insights. A special thanks to @leoniedejonge.bsky.social and @matthiasdilling.bsky.social for their support & organising the Special Issue.I also thank @caterinafr.bsky.social , @tiondelisa.bsky.social, @juliareuschenbach.bsky.social
➡️ A short German summary of the findings has been published in the WZB Mitteilungen: bibliothek.wzb.eu/artikel/2025...
💡Key take-away: Journalists work under structural, organisational & strategic constraints — but their choices matter. Reporting can reinforce or contain far-right influence. More self-reflection, internal debate & clearer strategies are needed for critical engagement.
Together, these pressures often lead to "anticipatory fear" and forms of overcompensation in response to both self-imposed & external pressures from the far right.
Journalists’ responses are shaped by three factors:
1. Supply-side factors (far-right strategies, external pressure,internal conflicts)
2. Demand-side factors (societal radicalisation, critical events,polarising issues)
3. Institutional constraints (funding models, resources, economic incentives)
I develop a theoretical framework explaining why the media cordon sanitaire - an approach that denies far-right actors direct platforms and avoids amplifying their ideas - is increasingly weakening.
I conducted interviews with editors-in-chief, political editors, and journalists across different media outlets and regions in Germany. These interviews provide rare insights into journalists’ perceptions, motivations, and the “behind-the-scenes” constraints shaping their work.
Although media reporting on the far right is widely debated, journalists’ underlying motivations are rarely analysed systematically:
How do journalists respond to the far right? And what factors influence these responses?
NEW PUBLICATION
“How the Media Cordon Sanitaire Crumbles: Lessons from Germany” now out in @prxjournal.bsky.social
🔓 doi.org/10.1080/2474736X.2026.2621808
I’m very happy that this paper is out – this project is particularly important to me.
65.1🦋
#FarRight amplifiers 🔊
@dasalgon.bsky.social and @tevoelker.bsky.social show how far-right actors increasingly shape the agendas of mainstream parties, particularly around Islam, migration & cultural issues. #AfD
Very excited to see this out at @bjpols.bsky.social! In this article, I show that contemporary political news coverage makes it challenging for readers to learn information that is helpful for democratic accountability, even for very politically engaged audiences.
A brief summary:
Für Medienschaffende ist der Umgang mit der extremen Rechten zugegebenermaßen nicht immer einfach. Aber ein Lifestyle-Interview mit Chrupalla sprengt jeden journalistischen Rahmen. Hier wird nicht nur eine Plattform geboten, sondern extrem rechte Politik aktiv normalisiert. 🤯
Must-read on democratic resilience!
How can illiberalism be countered, which strategies are available, what trade-offs do they entail, and under what conditions are they effective?
Bildbeschreibung Policy Brief Wirksam gegen RechtsauBen Eine systematische Analyse zivilgesellschaftlicher Strategien gegen die extreme Rechte Christin Janicke Hans Jonas Gunzelmann Teresa Volker Swen Hutter Zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen spielen in der Auseinandersetzung mit Rechts extremismus eine zentrale Rolle. Sie setzen auf eine Vielzahl von Strategien, die von unterschiedlichsten Organisationen genutzt werden - von Gewerkschaften iiber Sport- vereine und Kultureinrichtungen bis zu Feuerwehren und Naturschutzverbénden. Das Projekt ,Wirksam gegen RechtsauBen" hat diese Strategien auf Basis von 191 Praxis- Handreichungen und 56 wissenschaftlichen Studien analysiert und fiinf iibergeord- nete Typen identifiziert: 1. organisationale Strategien, 2. Netzwerkarbeit, 3. politische Bildung, 4. Proteste und 5. Offentlichkeitsarbeit. Doch wihrend das Praxiswissen um- fangreich ist, bleibt die wissenschaftliche Evidenz zur Wirkung der Strategien be- grenzt. Daher braucht es einen systematischen Wissenstransfer zwischen zivilgesell- schaftlichen Handlungsfeldern, eine praxisnahe Forschung, Kooperationen zwischen Wissenschaft und Praxis sowie eine langfristige finanzielle und politische Unterstützung- zung für zivilgesellschaftliche Akteur*innen.
Das WZB-Projekt „Wirksam gegen Rechtsaußen" hat Strategien von zivilgesellschaftlichen Institutionen in der Auseinandersetzung mit #Rechtsextremismus untersucht und systematisiert. Den neuen Policy Brief dazu gibt es hier: www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10...
@chjncke.bsky.social @tevoelker.bsky.social
Why did antisemitism rise in Germany during the Covid pandemic? And why was this increase concentrated among political centrists, rather than on the fringes?
doi.org/10.1017/S153...
@kanol.bsky.social @wzb.bsky.social @uni-hamburg.de @politikuhh.bsky.social @socfub.bsky.social
🚨 Join us for the next edition Summer School for Women* in Political Methodology in Mannheim 🚨
7 days of hands-on advanced methods + networking for PhDs, postdocs & early-career researchers.
Free of charge (limited travel support).
Deadline 1 March 2026: summerschoolwpm.org
#methodsky #polisky