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August 15, 2023

Announcing The Loop’s inaugural Best Blog prize

Kate Hawkins The Loop blog site launched on 12 October 2020. In spring 2021, our team discussed establishing an annual prize for the strongest blog piece published during a calendar year. Managing Editor Kate Hawkins tells the story of the creation of our first-ever award Read more

July 25, 2023

Sovereignist claims in France and Italy

Luca Carrieri ‘Sovereignism’ has been characterised as a product of globalisation and Europeanisation, presumably as an (over)reaction to the perceived negative consequences of both. Luca Carrieri and Nicolò Conti's research shows that party supply on sovereignism has been strongly influenced by public demand Read more

July 11, 2023

China’s boxing feminists: discipline and resistance in contemporary Chinese feminism

Yuting He As gender becomes an increasingly heated issue in China, He Yuting and Ruairidh Brown explore how the ‘female boxer’ has become a key disciplinary image in this struggle – and how it can be contested Read more

March 8, 2023

The Loop’s gender balance, and the 50:50 challenge

Johanne Døhlie Saltnes The Loop turns two years old today. On the occasion of our second birthday, Academic Editors Johanne Døhlie Saltnes and Martin Bull reflect on the gender balance among our authors. The Loop has taken some initiatives to bolster the proportion of female contributors, but there is still room for improvement Read more

February 24, 2023

Five futures for digital advocacy organisations

Nina Hall Digital advocacy organisations have pioneered new strategies to mobilise people rapidly, and shape public opinion. But increasingly, they face challenges from new technologies, and complex relationships with NGOs. Nina Hall and Paola Pierri outline five potential futures for these organisations Read more

November 24, 2022

Musk’s Twitter takeover has damaged its popularity, but it may yet survive

Aleksandra Spalińska Elon Musk’s takeover throws Twitter’s future into question. Drawing from Albert Hirschman’s 1970 work on organisational decline, Aleksandra Spalińska explains how the high costs of leaving means a full exit from the platform is not a viable option for every Twitter user Read more

October 12, 2022

🌊 Resisting autocratisation

Luca Manucci We have, in the intellectual world, spent much time trying to understand populism, fascism, illiberalism and the processes of autocratisation. Now, argues Luca Manucci, it is time to debate and establish the best strategies to fight against these tendencies and establish democratic resilience Read more

June 7, 2022

♟️ The rise of ‘information autocracies’: Kazakhstan and its constitutional referendum

Bakhytzhan Kurmanov To understand today’s autocratic regimes, we should look at how they exploit social media, argues Bakhyzhan Kurmanov. In Kazakhstan, a referendum in the name of ‘open government’ is effectively a sham. What's more, it is a cover for autocratic practices of silencing dissent Read more

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