While the examples of Nazi propaganda offer a specific glimpse into the past of propaganda methods, it’s essential to recognize that the art of manipulation has not disappeared. In fact, it has further evolved with the digital times. In the age of social media, propaganda has taken on new forms by using platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Telegram it is able to reach a much younger audience. Right-wing parties, amongst many others, have been using and exploiting these platforms to spread their political messages and recruit new followers and thus spread further awareness about their political goals.
Social media platforms today are designed to be addictive. Their algorithms constantly learn our preferences, feeding us content that aligns with our beliefs and creating echo chambers where other opinions are drowned out. This highly personalized experience can make it difficult to distinguish between fact and fiction or even fake news. Younger individuals who spend a significant amount of time on these platforms are particularly sensitive. Their developing critical thinking skills make them more vulnerable to the manipulation of information that is consumed so fast and often.
Social media platforms are not just passive spaces for consuming content; they are carefully engineered systems designed to keep users engaged. At the core of these platforms are algorithms and complex rules that determine what content users can see. When users interact with content on social media—by liking, sharing, or commenting—they provide valuable data to these algorithms. This information allows the platform to tailor the user’s feed, showing more of what they already liked and shared. Over time, this creates a filter bubble that isolates users from diverse perspectives and exposes them to a constant stream of information that confirms their existing beliefs. (De Luca, 2024)
The phenomenon known as the “echo chamber effect” (Khosravinik, 2017) can be particularly dangerous when it comes to political and social issues. Extremist groups and individuals can exploit algorithms to spread their messages to a broader audience by creating highly engaging and emotionally charged content. As a result, a deformed perception of reality emerges, allowing misinformation and conspiracy theories to thrive. Users become increasingly polarized and may struggle to understand the nuances of complex issues. This decline in critical thinking skills can have serious consequences, ranging from political extremism to social unrest.
The study of Harenberg (2024) has shown that young adults primarily get their news from social media, relying less on traditional news sources. As a result, many people now base their knowledge on information consumed on platforms like TikTok, often treating it as factual. The common phrase “I read somewhere that… ” has taken on a new meaning in this context, as most “scientific” findings are learned from videos and accepted as truth with little skepticism (Light-hearted News on Social Media Drawing Gen Z Away From Traditional Sources, 2023). This trend has significant implications, as social media platforms often contain misinformation and disinformation. Right-wing groups have made it a habit to exploit this by creating engaging content that appeals to the emotions of young people, often inciting fear, anger, and resentment. They sometimes also use popular challenges or TikTok trends, incorporating well-known songs to convey a right-wing worldview or message within their videos (Br, 2024).
The content in question is designed to provoke anxieties around status and power loss, hereby calling for men to band together in a show of solidarity. This narrative crafts a sense of urgency and companionship by tapping into the insecurities some men feel regarding their masculinity. Right-wing populist rhetoric often use this to promise a revival of traditional gender roles, suggesting that by sticking to these traditional roles, individuals can improve their self-esteem and find belonging within a community that is portrayed as robust and united (Dillet, 2020).
In this scenario, women are often depicted as passive, weak, or even as threats. This portrayal not only diminishes women but also demands men to take up the initiative of ‘defending’ the traditional family structure against the more modern family structures. Furthermore, the glorification of violence in some of these videos is very high; it is often framed as legitimate and even heroic to solve problems in a more brutal way, as this is considered manly and “normal”. This narrative can particularly resonate with young men, who may struggle with their identities and seek recognition within their community (Nickschas & Nickschas, 2024). The combination of these different themes and struggling emotions as young adults reinforces a cycle of anxiety, identity, and aggression and is used and capitalized. With this, right-wing populist messages promise a return to traditional gender roles and offer a boost to self-esteem by promoting a sense of belonging in a supposedly strong community.
Sources:
Khosravinik, M. (2017). Right wing populism in the West: social media discourse and echo chambers. Insight Turkey. https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/26300530.pdf
Dillet, B. (2020). Speaking to algorithms? Rhetorical political analysis as technological analysis. Politics, 42(2), 231–246. https://doi.org/10.1177/0263395720968060
Light-hearted news on social media drawing Gen Z away from traditional sources. (2023, July 20). www.ofcom.org.uk. https://www.ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/attitudes-to-news/light-hearted-news-social-media-drawing-gen-z/#:~:text=Social%20media%20platforms%20dominate%20the,feature%20in%20their%20top%20five.
Harenberg, M. (2024, July 8). Social Media als Nachrichtenquelle der Generation Z. MedienNetzwerk Bayern. https://mediennetzwerk-bayern.de/netzwerkwissen-social-media-nachrichtenquelle-generation-z/#top
De Luca, S. (2024, January 17). Filterblasen: Leben in der Bubble. MDR.DE. https://www.mdr.de/medien360g/medienwissen/meinungsbildung-im-netz-filterblasen-leben-in-der-bubble-100.html
Br, I. P. (2024, May 16). Warum die AfD auf TikTok Erfolg hat – und was andere Parteien daraus lernen. tagesschau.de. https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/gesellschaft/rechtsextremismus-jugendliche-100.htmlNickschas, J., & Nickschas, J. (2024, March 22). TikTok drosselt Reichweite von AfD-Europawahlkandidat Krah. tagesschau.de. https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/innenpolitik/tiktok-afd-100.html
