Alt-right pipeline

Use of the internet allows individuals with heterodox beliefs to alter their environment, which in turn has transformative effects on the user. Influence from external sources such as the internet can be gradual so that the individual is not immediately aware of their changing understanding or surroundings. Members of the alt-right refer to this radicalization process as "taking the red pill" in reference to the method of immediately achieving greater awareness in The Matrix. This is in contrast to the gradual nature of radicalization described by the alt-right pipeline.[10][12]

Many on the far-right recognize the potential of this radicalization method and actively share right-wing content with the intention of gradually radicalizing those around them. A common method used to rope in new audiences into far-right circles is to use humor and memes to spread right-wing rhetoric and ideology to make the content palpable and acceptable to newer audiences. The nature of internet memes means they can easily be recreated and spread to many different internet communities. Examples of this can be seen in cartoon character Pepe the Frog, and internet personalities such as Steven Crowder.[12][13]

YouTube has been identified as a major element in the alt-right pipeline. This is facilitated through an "Alternative Influence Network", in which various right-wing scholars, pundits, and internet personalities interact with one another to boost performance of their content. These figures may vary in their ideologies between conservatism, libertarianism, or white nationalism, but they share a common opposition to feminism, progressivism, and social justice that allows viewers of one figure to quickly acclimate to another.[1] They often prioritize right-wing social issues over right-wing economic issues, with little discussion of fiscal conservatism. Some individuals in this network may not interact with one another, but a collection of interviews, internet debates, and other interactions create pathways for users to be introduced to new content.[2]

Youtube’s algorithm works by recommending similar content to users via a powerful recommendation system; which has been designed to quickly and easily recommend similar content or content that is otherwise similar to a user’s interest. Users can deep dive into topics that interest them easily instead of manually searching for content. On the other hand, this seamless user experience likewise allows newer audiences to be exposed to extreme content, and for already radicalized individuals to reconfirm their biases. As well, it is common for videos that promote misinformation, and conspiracy theories gain large traction in Youtube’s algorithm, because of how alarmist video content like this regularly garners millions of views, and continues to go viral.[10][6]

When a user is exposed to certain content featuring certain political issues or culture war issues, this recommendation system may lead users to different ideas or issues, including Islamophobia, opposition to immigration, antifeminism, or reproduction rates.[10][14] Recommended content is often somewhat related, which creates an effect of gradual radicalization between multiple issues, referred to as a pipeline. However, the platform has also been documented on several occasions recommending certain types of content that is entirely unrelated to the previous content a user typically engages with.[3][14] Radicalization also takes place in interactions with other radicalized users online, on varied platforms such as Gab, Reddit, 4chan, or Discord.[10] Major personalities in this chain often have a presence on Facebook and Twitter, though YouTube is typically their primary platform for messaging and earning income.[6] The sheer scale of the internet, as well as the many entry points into the pipeline, adds a level of complexity to the radicalization process that often makes it difficult to target and prevent.

Algorithms, regardless of the social media platform of which they serve, play a huge role in the way an individual’s internet experience is altered as they begin consuming more far-right content, due to the nature of always funnelling similar content to users. This phenomenon of algorithmic filtering can create echo chambers, which can make the de-programming process extremely difficult for individuals who are deeply entrenched in this content sphere and community. However, research into algorithms and social media is often difficult, since companies are not transparent or forthcoming to third-parties about their algorithms and data, and while the effects have been replicated in some studies,[2] and the extent of algorithmic bias is unclear.[11][15]

The alt-right pipeline has been found to begin with the intellectual dark web community, which is made up of internet personalities that are unified by an opposition to identity politics and political correctness, such as Joe Rogan, Ben Shapiro, Dave Rubin, and Jordan Peterson. The intellectual dark web community overlaps and interacts with the alt-lite community, such as Steven Crowder, Paul Joseph Watson, Mark Dice, and Sargon of Akkad. This community in turn overlaps and interacts with the alt-right community, such as James Allsup, Black Pigeon Speaks, Varg Vikernes, and Red Ice.[2] The most extreme endpoint often involves fascism or belief in an international Jewish conspiracy,[12] though the severity of extremism can vary between individuals.[6]

The antifeminist Manosphere has been identified as another early point in the alt-right pipeline.[5] The men's rights movement often discusses men's issues more visibly than other groups, attracting young men with interest in such issues when no alternative is made available. Many right-wing internet personalities have developed a method to expand their audiences by commenting on popular media; videos that criticize movies or video games for supporting left-wing ideas are more likely to attract fans of the respective franchises.[6]

The format presented by YouTube has allowed extremists of all ideologies to access new audiences through this means.[6] The same process has also been used to facilitate far-left radicalization. The internet community BreadTube developed through the use this pipeline process to introduce users to left-wing content and mitigate exposure to right-wing content,[6][7] though the pipeline process has been found to be less effective in spreading far-left radicalization due to the larger variety of opposing left-wing groups that limits interaction and overlap.[7] This dichotomy can also cause a "whiplash polarization" in which individuals are converted between far-right and far-left politics.[6]

The psychological factors of radicalization through the alt-right pipeline are similar to other forms of radicalization, including normalization, acclimation, and dehumanization. Normalization involves the trivialization of racist and antisemitic rhetoric. Individuals early in the alt-right pipeline will not willingly embrace such rhetoric, but will adopt it under the guise of dark humor, causing it to be less shocking over time. This may sometimes be engineered intentionally by members of the alt-right to make their beliefs more palatable and provide plausible deniability for extreme beliefs. Acclimation is the process of being conditioned to seeing bigoted content. By acclimating to controversial content, individuals become more open to slightly more extreme content. Over time, conservative figures appear too moderate and users seek out more extreme voices. Dehumanization is the final step of the alt-right pipeline, where minorities are seen as lesser or undeserving of life and dehumanizing language is used to refer to people that disagree with far-right beliefs.[10]

The process is associated with young men that experience loneliness, meaninglessness, or a lack of belonging.[6] Furthermore, the amount of young men experiencing loneliness and a lack of meaningful attachments means that these individuals will likely bond together over their shared feelings and commonality, which reinforces the feeling of community in right-wing internet spheres.[8] An openness to unpopular views is necessary for individuals to accept beliefs associated with the alt-right pipeline. It has been associated with contrarianism, in which an individual uses the working assumption that the worldviews of most people are entirely wrong. From this assumption, individuals are more inclined to adopt beliefs that are unpopular or fringe. This makes effective several entry points of the alt-right pipeline, such as libertarianism, in which ideologies attract individuals with traits that make them susceptible to radicalization when exposed to other fringe ideas.[4] Motivation for pursuing these communities varies, with some people finding them by chance while others seek them out. Interest in video games is associated with the early stages of the alt-right pipeline.[6]

One of the most effective methods of radicalization among the alt-right pipeline is the way freedom of speech and expression is portrayed by pundits. The belief is that, when expressing these socially conservative or bigoted viewpoints, individuals will experience criticism or blow back, their freedom of speech is being infringed upon. Often, it is called being "cancelled" or censored by opponents, and fighting back against these perceived attacks is highly encouraged by prevalent right-wing figures on the internet. The framing of criticism and discourse as a personal attack often means that individuals are highly defensive of their beliefs, and it can be difficult to engage in rational debates with such individuals, and to change and challenge their beliefs.

Internet radicalization correlates with an increase in lone wolf attacks and domestic terrorism.[9][16] The alt-right pipeline has been associated with the Christchurch mosque shootings, in which a far-right extremist killed 51 Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, who directly credited the Internet for the formation of his beliefs in his manifesto.[10][17] Many social media platforms have recognized the potential of radicalization and have implemented measures to limit its prevalence. High profile extremist commentators such as Alex Jones have been banned from several platforms, and platforms often have rules against hate speech and misinformation.

In 2019, YouTube announced a change to its recommendation algorithm to reduce conspiracy theory related content.[6][14] In spite of promises to change, the Mozilla foundation launched a crowd-sourced research study into Youtube’s recommendation software, inspired by the lack of change from the platform.[3] In 2020, the extension RegretsReporter was launched, which was designed so users can report videos and content they regretted watching. Between July 2020 and May 2021, the Mozilla foundation began collecting reports from volunteers located in 190 countries to collect data on Youtube’s algorithm.[3] The topics of videos were wide ranging, but found out that 71% of reports came from videos recommended in the algorithm and were 40% more likely to be reported as a regret than videos that were searched for.[3]

Some extreme content, such as explicit deceptions of violence, are typically removed on most social media platforms. On YouTube, content that expresses support of extremism may have monetization features removed, may be flagged for review, or may have public user comments disabled.[11]

• Filter bubble
• Internet manipulation
• Nonviolent extremism
• Online youth radicalization
• Right-wing populism
• Right-wing terrorism