Recent mentions

March 21, 2023 | VICE News

Incel and extremist content, just a search away on TikTok

ISD's Tim Squirrell and Ciarán O'Connor spoke to VICE News about the little that has changed regarding incel content on TikTok in the last two years, and just how easy it is for users to come across this content.

November 30, 2022 | i News

The dark world of incels, what to know and how to help

ISD's Tim Squirrell spoke to i News about incels, the signs an individual might exhibit when being drawn into this subculture, and how concerned family and loved ones can help bring them out again.

Graphic of Donald Trump with Q speech bubble

September 23, 2022 | Washington Post

Stock music song twice appropriated by QAnon and Trump

ISD’s Jared Holt spoke to the Washington Post about the latest Donald Trump and QAnon crossover: an innocuous stock music song that's become a common theme for QAnon and the Trump campaign.

Shiba Inu dog against Ukrainian flag

September 12, 2022 | POLITICO

NAFO: make memes not bombs

POLITICO's investigation into the online pro-Ukraine collective NAFO features ISD research. 

July 10, 2022 | The Times of London

Time to restore the ‘forgotten right’

ISD's Zahed Amanullah spoke to the Times of London following a session on the digital world at the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in London.

Julia Smirnova being interviewed

July 7, 2022 | ARD Kontraste

Vovan and Lexus: Pranksters or political actors?

ISD analyst, Julia Smirnova, spoke to Leading German investigative TV magazine ARD Kontraste about Russian 'comedians' Vovan and Lexus and their relation with the Russian state.

May 13, 2022 | Channel 4 News

Growing British far-right group pushes new grooming tactics

ISD’s Julia Ebner provided analysis to a Channel 4 investigation on the tactics and narratives used by the British white nationalist movement Patriotic Alternative (PA) to groom young people in the country.

March 31, 2022 | UnHerd

The far-right’s splitting view of the Russia-Ukraine War

Tim Squirrell, ISD's Head of Communications, spoke with UnHerd about the far-right's splitting view of the Russia-Ukraine War, the "Balkanistation" of the ecosystem and the appeal of conspiracies in moments of human crises.

March 20, 2022 | NYT

It’s never been so easy for Russia to wage an information war

ISD researcher Elise Thomas features in an article for the New York Times, where she reminds us that Russia has always executed information attacks, but it's never been as easy as it is now in the age of the Internet and smart phones. 

dictionary

March 3, 2022 | USA Today

Experts come together to define ‘extremism’

ISD has joined with the Polarization and Extremism Research Innovation Lab (PERIL) at the American University in Washington to define 'extremism', USA Today reports.