New report into online hate speech and radicalisation in Germany reveals wide-ranging debate around tackling extremist content

Berlin, Tuesday 25th September, 2018: A new report released today brings together a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives to explore the prevalence of hate speech on social media, the strategies and tactics of Islamist and far-right extremist groups online, the potential impact of disinformation on political polarisation and radicalisation, and how government, the private sector and civil society can respond to these challenges.

Hate Speech and Radicalisation in the Network, published by the Online Civil Courage Initiative (OCCI), a programme of Facebook and the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), a global counter-extremism organisation, brings together voices from a variety of backgrounds and fields of expertise, including contributions from Peter Neumann, Julia Ebner, Matthias Quent, and Karolin Schwarz.

The report’s findings show which online strategies are employed by right-wing extremist and Islamist groups to target vulnerable Internet users for recruitment, intimidate political adversaries and manipulate the online discourse.

The authors highlight the tactics and strategies of these groups online and stress the need for a thorough understanding of their modus operandi in order to design effective and proportionate responses.

Report contributor Matthias Quent sees hatred on the Internet as part of an extensive “cultural backlash” against progressive achievements of modern, democratic societies, which also occurs offline.

The report also looks at the role of disinformation in furthering the spread of hate speech and extremist perspectives online, fuelling polarisation, and disrupting democratic elections. It highlights the need for social media companies to continue to provide access to data on the origins, reach and impact of disinformation, and for tech companies to continue to work closely with journalists and fact-checking organisations.

Identifying gaps in our understanding of the issues at play, the report offers a series of suggested ways forward for policy-makers, the private sector and civil society which include: the removal of content; a competitive counter-narrative strategy; and digital education.

Hate Speech and Radicalisation in the Network will be launched at 18:30 tonight at Facebook on Potsdamer Platz, with what promises to be an animated debate between Gerd Billen (StS Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection), Marie-Teresa Weber (Public Policy Manager, Facebook) and Matthias Quent (Director, Institute for Democracy and Civil Society). Julia Ebner (Research Fellow, Institute for Strategic Dialogue) will moderate the conversation which will touch on hate speech, extremism, echo chambers and “fake news” on the internet, especially with regard to the current discussions surrounding the German Network Enforcement Act (NetzDG).