Mimi Mihăilescu
Online memes have evolved from satirical messages to powerful ideological tools. Recently, the far-right 'Dark MAGA' movement has harnessed memes for political messaging and identity-building. Mimi Mihăilescu describes how Elon Musk has emerged as an anti-establishment symbol: revered, weaponised, and transformed within these radicalised online communities. Read more
Mimi Mihăilescu
Far-right Romanian presidential candidate George Simion is not just running a campaign, he’s waging a meme war. In today’s digital age, argues Mimi Mihăilescu, the way politicians communicate with the public has fundamentally shifted – and internet memes are emerging as powerful weapons for shaping public perception and discourse. Read more
Olga Vlasova
In Russia, it is becoming increasingly difficult to get a reliable connection to YouTube, as the Kremlin seeks to limit access to global content. Newer platforms like the Russian Rutube offer only limited content, leaving users feeling disconnected. But is this strategy truly beneficial for the Kremlin? Olga Vlasova considers whether it might have deeper political motives. Read more
Kate Hawkins
In 2022, The Loop inaugurated a Best Blog prize to reward a contribution of exceptional value. We have now conferred our second £500 prize on the author of a blog piece judged by our independent jury to be the best in that calendar year. Managing Editor Kate Hawkins presents the longlisted articles — and the jury reveals what gave our 2023 winner the edge. Read more
Andrea Ceron
Analysing posts on Facebook and Twitter-X, Andrea Ceron, Silvia Decadri, and Fedra Negri highlight how Italian politicians use populist rhetoric to generate engagement. They find that such rhetoric does indeed increase the likelihood of posts going viral, even among non-populist voters Read more
Courtney Blackington
Not all conspiracy theories that spread on social media remain popular over time. Courtney Blackington and Frances Cayton argue that conspiracy theories which map onto salient cleavages are more likely to persist and spread online. They find that elites who endorse conspiracy theories do not always attract engagement unless an event occurs that makes those conspiracy theories salient Read more
Paola Pierri
Social media has lured us all into a 'popularity trap'. We thought we were transforming democracy, but we are not. Paola Pierri makes the case for a politics of presence in the digital age. This, she argues, needs to advance the visibility of marginalised identities, not their popularity From popularity to visibility In our digital […] Read more
Taina Meriluoto
To strive towards democratic transformations, we have much to learn from marginalised activists. They espouse ‘presentist identities’ to fight the dismissive categories through which other people see them. Presentist identities do not assume a past or a future. Instead, they make us simultaneously perceivable and free, writes Taina Meriluoto Read more
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