How far right is infiltrating everyday culture

Extremist messaging now woven into music and YouTube videos, with one expert saying: 'You can be radicalised sitting on your couch'…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/27/its-frightening-how-far-right-is-infiltrating-everyday-culture

 

Far-right Facebook groups are engine of radicalisation, data investigation suggests

Network exposes hundreds of thousands of Britons to racist language, conspiracy and disinformation, Guardian research indicates…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/28/far-right-facebook-groups-are-engine-of-radicalisation-in-uk-data-investigation-suggests

 

Weekly Roundup: The Death and Afterlife of Charlie Kirk (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

In this episode, Brad and Dan discuss the life, death, and legacy of Charlie Kirk, examining the media and political reactions to his assassination, the narratives emerging from both the right and left, and the broader context of political violence in America.

They explore Kirk’s influence on conservative and Christian nationalist movements, the controversial rhetoric and actions associated with him and his organization TPUSA, and the tendency of mainstream media to valorize divisive figures after their deaths.

They emphasize their opposition to political violence, reflect on the complexities of online radicalization, and critique the use of free speech rhetoric to silence criticism, while also highlighting recent events and ongoing issues related to violence, democracy, and hope in the U.S. and abroad.
Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/weekly-roundup-the-death-and-afterlife-of-charlie-kirk/

Oops! Trans ideology and college have nothing to do with this shooter’s motives after all.

Conservatives had latched onto reports – that have since been retracted – that the casings for bullets found with the gun that police suspect was used to kill Kirk were engraved with markings indicating "trans ideology". 

"To the surprise of literally no one," Megyn Kelly said on her show earlier in the aftermath of Kirk's killing. "There's one particular group that's been running around killing Americans in the name of ideology, and it's transgender activists or individuals, or those who proclaim that they are." 

 Once Robinson's identity was revealed, Kelly speculated that Robinson must have been radicalized after going to college...

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/13/charlie-kirk-killing-alleged-shooter-motivation

 

Let’s talk about the #trump Oval Office tirade now that a suspect was arrested

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/F1zNW3lLSWU

 

Her teen son was being radicalized online — until she stepped in : NPR

Nihilistic violent extremism

In March, the FBI issued a public service announcement warning of "violent online networks," such as 764 and CVLT, that target minors and other vulnerable individuals. It has also shared informational reels on Instagram to educate parents and educators about these groups and share warning signs that young people may be under these networks' influence. The messaging attempts to convey the unusual breadth of activities and motives found within these networks, spanning from sexual gratification to building clout within these online spaces.

The FBI has recently focused on a relatively new motive within this area, for which it has coined the term "nihilistic violent extremism."

"The term Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE) refers to what is motivating some of these subjects to commit criminal acts," the FBI wrote in a statement to NPR. "They want to sow chaos and facilitate the destruction of society." The agency shared that it is pursuing at least 250 investigations tied to violent online networks. The FBI did not agree to an interview with NPR...

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/06/nx-s1-5479882/teen-forums-violent-extremist-grooming

 

Far-right extremists using games platforms to radicalise teenagers, report warns | Far right | The Guardian

Parents advised to be vigilant over summer holidays to risk of offenders using in-game live chats to target their children…

… with content celebrating extreme violence and school shootings also shared…

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/jul/31/far-right-extremists-games-platforms-radicalise-teenagers-report

The Alleged Minnesota Assassin’s Connections to the New Apostolic Reformation (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

In this emergency episode of ‘Straight White American, Jesus,’ host Brad Onishi discusses the assassination of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband by a shooter impersonating a police officer. 

Brad provides details about the suspect, Vance Boelter, and his background, including his ties to Donald Trump, anti-abortion views, and Christian ministry. 

Scholar Matt Taylor explains Boelter’s connections to the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), diving into the history and influence of Christ for the Nations Institute, a significant institution in the independent charismatic Christian world. Their comments contextualize the violent act within the broader landscape of political violence and radicalization in the U.S., highlighting the dire implications of such events.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/the-alleged-minnesota-assassins-connections-to-the-new-apostolic-reformation/

BREAKING: Alleged Nashville School Shooter RADICALIZED By Nick Fuentes and Candace Owens

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfYitSq-QDg

Weekly Roundup: Luigi Mangione and the End of Civilization (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

Brad and Dan critique Donald Trump’s grocery store anecdotes and his failed claims on food prices. They then explore the concept of coalition-building to counter Trump’s administration, touching upon current events including Luigi Mangione’s radicalization by pain and the killing of CEO Brian Thompson, dissect a Adrienne LaFrance’s article in the Atlantic on societal violence and ‘de-civilization,’ and analyze Pete Hegseth’s controversial beliefs about the military.

Interview: 

https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/weekly-roundup-luigi-mangione-and-the-end-of-civilization/

Opinion | The radicalization of the Republican Party is not ‘polarization’ - The Washington Post

"The bipartisan border compromise — her bipartisan bill — was sunk by Republicans. Republicans in the House overwhelmingly opposed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, commonly known as the "Bipartisan" Infrastructure Bill (which President Biden modified to get bipartisan support); almost every Republican voted against the Chips Act, they all voted against the Inflation Reduction Act, and some even voted against the Pact Act, which would have helped veterans. House Republicans have launched phony, baseless impeachment hearings. Senate Republicans filibustered reenactment of a key part of the Voting Rights Act, blocked a bipartisan Jan. 6, 2021, commission and overwhelmingly refused to convict four-times-indicted former president Donald Trump. The assertion that hyper-partisanship, chaos and nihilism (e.g., threatening to shut down the government, egging on a default and refusing to even vote on Ukraine aide) is equally divided amounts to an outright fabrication — or utter cluelessness…"

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/03/10/republican-party-radical-trump-polarization/

PolitiFact | No evidence of growing trend of trans radicalization or terrorism, experts say

On Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on March 28, host Tucker Carlson claimed the transgender movement seemed to be "getting militant and possibly dangerous" and described a rising threat from the "extremist trans fringe." He said, "We seem to be watching the rise of trans terrorism." 

But after consulting the data, and domestic extremism experts and researchers, we found the opposite: There is no evidence of a widespread trend of transgender radicalization toward violence. On the contrary, trans people are more likely to be victims of crime than to be perpetrators of it…

https://www.politifact.com/article/2023/mar/31/no-evidence-growing-trend-trans-radicalization-or/

Why Are People in the US Becoming Radicalized? | WIRED

The human brain doesn't like uncertainty, and it can cause people to seek out a path to feeling more certain and assured by any means possible. 

 J. M. Berger, an author and researcher who focuses on extremism, says there have been many reasons for people to feel uncertain over the past decade or so. Rapid changes in technology, major shifts in the labor market and the economy, the Covid-19 pandemic, and more have caused many Americans to feel unanchored. This creates a situation where extremism can flourish. 

 "What you find is people are most vulnerable to authoritarianism and extremist impulses when they don't know what they're supposed to do," Berger says. "They don't know where they fit in the world." 

 Arie Kruglanski, a professor of psychology at the University of Maryland, says that something that motivates people in uncertain times is a need to feel significant...

https://www.wired.com/story/radicalization-extremism-us-uncertainty-social-media/

Republicans always choose radicalization to energize their electoral base

"There are ideological factors at play that severely restrict the realm of possibility and significantly privilege the more radical over the more restraint forces within the Republican party. It has become dogma on the right to define "us" (conservative white Christians) as the sole proponents of "real America" – and "them" (Democrats, liberals, "the left") as a fundamentally illegitimate, "un-American" threat. Within the confines of such a worldview, it's hard to justify compromise and restraint.

Every crisis situation only heightens the sense of being under siege that's animating so much of what is happening on the right, legitimizing and amplifying calls to hit harder, more aggressively. There's always permission to escalate, hardly ever to pull back. This underlying permission structure is absolutely key, and it is always the same: It states that "real Americans" are constantly being victimized, made to suffer under the yoke of crazy leftist politics, besieged by "un-American" forces of leftism; "we" have to fight back, by whatever means. In the minds of conservatives, they are never the aggressors, always the ones under assault. Building up this supposedly totalitarian, violent threat from the "left" allows them to justify their actions within the long-established framework of conservative self-victimization."

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/22/republicans-january-6-trumpism-radicalization-voters

How Netflix's Midnight Mass Gets Christian Radicalization EXACTLY Right - YouTube

"Midnight Mass on Netflix depicts the corruption of a small town's faith, from lukewarm Catholicism to fanaticism. With the exception of its use of literal plagues and monsters, this series represents Christian radicalization frighteningly well. Writer and director Mike Flanagan's commentary on the utility of religious faith echoes what many former believers, like myself, have learned in our experiences with religious radicalization.

Vi La Bianca and I review this series from that perspective. From Riley's atheism, to Monsignor Pruitt's corruption of faith, to Bev Keane's dogmatism, this show plays like an episode from our pasts as former Christian fundamentalists."
https://youtu.be/kQ-Xt-q9qHw

How the Proud Boys Gripped the Miami-Dade Republican Party (New York Times)

The concerted effort by the Proud Boys to join the leadership of the party — and, in some cases, run for local office — has destabilized and dramatically reshaped the Miami-Dade Republican Party that former Gov. Jeb Bush and others built into a powerhouse nearly four decades ago, transforming it from an archetype of the strait-laced establishment to an organization roiled by internal conflict as it wrestles with forces pulling it to the hard right. The conflict comes at a pivotal moment for Republicans nationally, as primary voters weigh whether to wrench the party from its extremist elements — or more fully embrace them.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/02/us/miami-republicans-proud-boys.html

Opinion | It’s not ‘polarization.’ We suffer from Republican radicalization. - The Washington Post

Only one party conducts fake election audits, habitually relies on conspiracy theories and wants to limit access to the ballot… Only one party overwhelmingly refused to participate in a bipartisan investigation of the Jan. 6 insurrection. Only one party tolerates and defends House members who resort to violent imagery and harass fellow lawmakers. Talk of "secession" comes from only one party. Only one party is turning a vigilante who killed two people and seriously injured another into a folk hero. Only one party rises in defense of parents publicly threatening school boards. Only one party has taken to defending book-banning and book-burning. Governors of only one party are suing private companies and localities that follow coronavirus guidelines.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/18/its-not-polarization-we-suffer-republican-radicalization/

A Lesson from Belgium in How to Deradicalize Your Town - The Atlantic

…Somers sponsored what he jokes is Mechelen's "speed dating" program, in which every foreign newcomer is matched with a Mechelen native, choosing a potential friend from a panel of five volunteers. The matched pairs sign a contract to meet weekly for six months, so that the newcomer can practice their Dutch and learn the basics of Belgian life. In the program, Mechelen old-timers tutor newcomers in skills such as opening a bank account and shopping. But sometimes, on a stroll or over a coffee, the migrant will confide to his teacher about the mother he misses or his loneliness, "and it's a human moment," said Somers. "And people come together, and there's change." Migrants learn about Belgian culture, and Flemish Belgians are taught to embrace Europe's 21st-century reality…

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/09/lesson-belgium-how-deradicalize-your-town/619992/

There’s a new tactic for exposing you to radical content online: the ‘slow red-pill’

The far right is trying to funnel people on Instagram to extreme content with a few simple tricks. Here's how they do it…

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jul/15/theres-a-new-tactic-for-exposing-you-to-radical-content-online-the-slow-red-pill

Opinion | Steve Bannon’s vile threats show the GOP’s radicalization is getting worse - The Washington Post

...Trump's former adviser is now elevating his profile as spokesman for the pro-Trump wing in a way that usefully illuminates the ugly depths of the GOP's ongoing radicalization...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/02/19/steve-bannon-toomey-seat-trump/