An Analyze on Far-Right Terrorism, Conspiracy Theories and the New Media

Abstract

The number of far-right terrorist attacks advocating for white supremacy has increased in the last decade, such as the 2011 Oslo Attack, the 2019 Christchurch Attack in New Zealand, the 2019 El Paso Attack or the 2019 Poway Synagogue Attack in the USA. Although these attacks took place in different geographies and at different times, there are some similarities between them. One of these similarities is that these terrorists, who have almost the same ideologies, frequently resort to conspiracy theories while shaping their security imaginations. When we evaluate conspiracy theories examined by different disciplines in social sciences in the context of terrorism, studies reveal that conspiracy theories may have a role that increases radicalization or resorting to violence. The first aim of this study is to examine the manifestos of the far-right terrorist attacks advocating white supremacy, to reveal whether they are affected by conspiracy theories and whether there is any similarity between their manifestos. The second aim of this study is to focus on how these terrorists, who are in distant geographies, are affected by each other and to focus on the role of new media in this issue. To this end, this study will first explain the impact of conspiracy theories on terrorism studies. Second, manifestos of terrorists will be examined and how conspiracy theories affect their security imaginations will be discussed. Finally, how attackers can become members of a virtual community in the context of new media will be interpreted by focusing on the Stormfront website.

Keywords

• Far-right Terrorism
• Security Studies
• New Media and Conspiracy Theories

Aşırı Sağ Terör, Komplo Teorileri ve Yeni Medya Üzerine İnceleme

Abstract

2011 Oslo Saldırısı, 2019 Yeni Zelanda Christchurch Saldırısı, 2019 Amerika Birleşik Devletleri (ABD) El Paso Saldırısı veya 2019 ABD Poway Sinagog Saldırısı gibi beyaz üstünlüğünü savunan terör saldırılarının sayısı son on yılda artış göstermiştir. Bu saldırılar farklı coğrafyalarda ve farklı zamanlarda gerçekleşmiş olmalarına rağmen aralarında bazı benzerlikler vardır. Bu benzerliklerden biri hemen hemen aynı ideolojilere sahip olan bu teröristlerin güvenlik tahayyüllerini şekillendirirken komplo teorilerine sıklıkla başvurmalarıdır. Sosyal bilimlerde farklı disiplinlerin incelediği komplo teorilerini terör bağlamında değerlendirdiğimizde yapılan çalışmalar, komplo teorilerinin radikalleşmeyi ya da şiddete başvurmayı artıran bir rolü olabileceğini ortaya koymaktadır. Bu çalışmanın amaçlarından birincisi de beyaz üstünlüğünü savunan aşırı-sağ terör saldırılarını yapan kişilerin manifestolarını inceleyerek komplo teorilerinden etkilenip etkilenmediklerini ortaya koymak ve manifestoları arasında benzerlik olup olmadığını ortaya çıkarmaktır. Bu çalışmanın bir diğer amacı ise uzak coğrafyalarda olan bu teröristlerin birbirlerinden nasıl etkilendiği üzerinde durmak ve yeni medyanın bu konudaki rolüne odaklanmaktadır. Bu amaçla, bu çalışmada ilk olarak komplo teorilerinin terörizm çalışmaları üzerindeki etkisi açıklanmıştır. İkinci olarak, teröristlerin manifestoları incelenecek ve komplo teorilerinin onların güvenlik tahayyüllerini nasıl etkilediği tartışılmıştır. Son olarak ise yeni medya bağlamında saldırganların nasıl sanal bir cemaatin üyesi olabilecekleri Stormfront web sitesine odaklanarak yorumlanmıştır.  

Keywords

• Aşırı-sağ Terör
• Güvenlik Çalışmaları
• Yeni Medya ve Komplo Teorileri

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