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Beyond anger: the populist radical right on TikTok

Beyond anger: the populist radical right on TikTok
Beyond anger: the populist radical right on TikTok
The video streaming app TikTok is increasingly deployed by political actors to reach younger voters, and this includes populist radical right (PRR) parties. In this study, our expectation is that longstanding PRR parties will be more likely than new PRR challengers to try to de-demonise their image as they land on the platform, in order to counteract years of negative coverage. To test this argument, we use a novel theoretical framework that captures visual de-demonisation and eudaimonic appeals, applying it to the study of strategic communication on TikTok by a combination of established and novel radical right parties and leaders. Our selection includes Marine Le Pen and Matteo Salvini on the one hand, and Eric Zemmour and Vox Spain on the other. We find that - contrary to widespread assumptions linking radical communication with toxic rhetoric and the spreading of fear – positive and optimistic appeals including inspirational cues that foster hope and communicate values and virtues play a significant role in how PRR actors adjusts their communication to the needs of the medium. Moreover, long standing PRR parties are found to be less likely than new PRR challengers to focus mainly on negative content.
1478-2804
673-689
Albertazzi, Daniele
3f12117a-1c2c-4b68-81d2-39fb01ec5020
Bonansinga, Donatella
864692cb-5d6b-4b72-bdbe-4a1fe5d0b6e5
Albertazzi, Daniele
3f12117a-1c2c-4b68-81d2-39fb01ec5020
Bonansinga, Donatella
864692cb-5d6b-4b72-bdbe-4a1fe5d0b6e5

Albertazzi, Daniele and Bonansinga, Donatella (2023) Beyond anger: the populist radical right on TikTok. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 32 (3), 673-689. (doi:10.1080/14782804.2022.2163380).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The video streaming app TikTok is increasingly deployed by political actors to reach younger voters, and this includes populist radical right (PRR) parties. In this study, our expectation is that longstanding PRR parties will be more likely than new PRR challengers to try to de-demonise their image as they land on the platform, in order to counteract years of negative coverage. To test this argument, we use a novel theoretical framework that captures visual de-demonisation and eudaimonic appeals, applying it to the study of strategic communication on TikTok by a combination of established and novel radical right parties and leaders. Our selection includes Marine Le Pen and Matteo Salvini on the one hand, and Eric Zemmour and Vox Spain on the other. We find that - contrary to widespread assumptions linking radical communication with toxic rhetoric and the spreading of fear – positive and optimistic appeals including inspirational cues that foster hope and communicate values and virtues play a significant role in how PRR actors adjusts their communication to the needs of the medium. Moreover, long standing PRR parties are found to be less likely than new PRR challengers to focus mainly on negative content.

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e-pub ahead of print date: 29 January 2023

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 496915
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/496915
ISSN: 1478-2804
PURE UUID: 2ff9ba7f-3c12-43ff-a031-ca7fa646a40f
ORCID for Donatella Bonansinga: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-1968-0811

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Date deposited: 08 Jan 2025 12:47
Last modified: 22 Aug 2025 02:45

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Contributors

Author: Daniele Albertazzi
Author: Donatella Bonansinga ORCID iD

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