Explosions on screen, chai in hand—life for Pakistan’s youth continues even as distant wars fill their digital world.
By Kiva Malick
Read more: thefridaytimes.com/28-Mar-2026/...
#Pakistan #GenZ #Iran #IranIsraelWar #youthdigital #onlineradicalisation #warandsocialmedia #digitalworld
Pakistani Gen Z watches the Iran-Israel war unfold on their phones, mixing memes, anxiety, and digital outrage in daily life.
By Kiva Malick
Read more: www.thefridaytimes.com/28-Mar-2026/...
#Pakistan #GenZ #Iran #IranIsraelWar #youthdigital #onlineradicalisation #warandsocialmedia
🧵 5/5
Leaving, however, is rarely simple. It’s typically a gradual, uneven process, involving rebuilding identity, relationships & a sense of belonging outside these communities.
#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
🧵 4/5
What prompts disengagement?
- Real-world relationships that contradict online narratives.
- Positive interactions that challenge misogynistic beliefs
- A growing recognition of the gap between ideology & lived experience.
#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
🧵 3/5
Yet over time, these same environments often become toxic echo chambers, reinforcing negativity & deepening isolation.
#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
🧵 2/5
The findings are striking. Many men enter these spaces during periods of loneliness, insecurity & uncertainty, where forums offer a sense of belonging & explanation.
#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
🧵 1/5
Drawing on new research from the Australian Institute of Criminology, it explores the pathways out of manosphere & incel communities, & what this tells us about prevention and support.
#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
Public conversations about the “manosphere” have surged recently. Much of this discussion focuses on how boys and young men are drawn into these spaces.
But this article asks how do some men actually leave?
🔗 tinyurl.com/4tmxfw4d
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#onlineradicalisation #manosphere #incel #extremismstudies
🧵 7/7
The broader takeaway is urgent: this is not simply a problem of “bad individuals” making bad choices. It is about the architecture of online spaces, the incentives of platforms, & the exploitative strategies of extremist & criminal networks.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 6/7
The result is a blurred boundary between victim & perpetrator, with some young people being manipulated into acts they barely understand.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 5/7
The article also emphasises method over motive. These networks often target vulnerability & use familiar grooming dynamics: building rapport, normalising harm & gradually demanding participation.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 4/7
In these spaces, harm becomes a form of status and social currency, with young users rewarded for ever more shocking acts.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 2/7
From there, exposure can escalate gradually: edgy jokes become normalised racism, misogyny becomes social bonding, & violence becomes aspirational.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 1/7
The piece describes how recruitment often begins in seemingly ordinary digital spaces — gaming platforms, meme pages, Discord servers & Telegram channels — where young people are looking for humour, community & belonging.
#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
Youth offending shouldn't be understood through clichés of “broken homes” or moral failure.
Instead, it is far more organised with young people being groomed online into pathways of extremism, cybercrime & sexual abuse.
🔗 tinyurl.com/yv2y9hvs
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#extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #farright
🧵 4/4
Dr Andrew Williams will explore the emergence of Christian nationalism in the UK, challenging the idea that it is simply symbolic cultural rhetoric & highlighting the wider political dynamics shaping its growth.
#onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #radicalright #CIRAF
🧵 2/4
This upcoming seminar explores the role of Christian nationalism & religious rhetoric in contemporary far-right politics, both online & offline.
#radicalisationstudies #extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #radicalright #Christiannationalism #CIRAF
🧵 1/4
The seminar series, Looking forward // looking back: learning from 2016 a decade on, reflects on how the past decade has reshaped the political landscape & what those changes might tell us about the future.
#onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #radicalright #Christiannationalism #CIRAF
The second event in the CIRAF Research Group’s 2026 seminar series is coming up!
The event is online & free to attend but registration is required: tinyurl.com/37u8bpy4
#radicalisationstudies #extremismstudies #onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #radicalright #Christiannationalism #CIRAF
🧵 6/6
Perhaps the most useful takeaway: group dynamics matter as much as content. People are rarely radicalised by a single post. They are radicalised by relationships, belonging & reinforcement over time.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 5/6
The webinar also discussed behavioural warning signs online, including identification with violence, preparation behaviours & self-positioning as a potential perpetrator.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 4/6
These processes intertwine ideology with socio-emotional validation. Members are not only convinced: they are supported, recognised & given meaning.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 3/6
Researchers identified three stabilising mechanisms within groups:
• collective sense-making.
• emotionalisation.
• stabilising narratives.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 2/6
Radicalisation, in this model, is not a single moment of persuasion but a longitudinal social process.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 1/6
Rather than a static “billboard for hate”, researchers described Telegram as a social ecosystem. Its technical affordances allow communities to form, stabilise, & evolve over time.
#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
The forth and final event was a @gnetresearch.bsky.social webinar, focusing on far-right radicalisation on Telegram.
One point stood out immediately: the platform is often misunderstood.
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#onlineextremism #extremismstudies #radicalisationstudies #onlineradicalisation
🧵 3/3
Jessa Mellea described how some nihilistic communities lack clear in-group/out-group boundaries. There is no manifesto, no end goal, and sometimes no shared ideology — only shared participation.
#onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #extremismstudies #extremismprevention
🧵 2/3
Priyank Mathur presented a new online toolkit designed as a “living resource” to support practitioners responding to harmful online mobilisation: www.campaigntoolkit.org
#onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #extremismstudies #extremismprevention
The second event focused on exploring youth radicalisation and mobilisation research outputs.
Several speakers highlighted a shift: not all harmful online communities are ideological in the traditional sense.
🧵👇
#onlineradicalisation #onlineextremism #extremismstudies #extremismprevention
Close-up of two hands holding a small mound of soil with a young green plant sprouting, set against a blurred natural background.
ECOFASCISM AND ONLINE DISCOURSE
New research explores how environmental narratives intersect with far-right digital cultures.
🔗 buff.ly/cFEOgTk
💬 Still marginal or worth closer monitoring?
#Ecofascism #FarRightExtremism #DigitalMedia #OnlineRadicalisation #SCENOR
