Extremists are cashing in on high-profile violence by recruiting new followers online and amplifying the use of violence to push their agendas. Researchers at New York University's Stern Center for Business and Human Rights tracked social media feeds after recent attacks, including Charlie Kirk's assassination, and found that violent extremist groups systematically exploit "trigger events" - such as high-profile incidents of violence - to recruit supporters, justify their ideologies, and call for retaliatory action.
The study analyzed over 520 plots and acts of terrorism and targeted violence in the US, which is a nearly 40% increase from last year. The researchers monitored online networks across the political spectrum, including far-right, far-left, violent Islamist, and nihilistic violent extremists. They found that these groups use social media platforms to spread their messages, often using mainstream sites like X before funneling people into private platforms to coordinate further.
The report highlights the rise of "nihilistic" violent extremism, a category used by the FBI to describe attackers who don't fit into standard ideological frames and prioritize violence for its own sake. These groups now use performative shock value as a way to spread their ideology online, often referencing online communities in manifestos or on bullet casings.
"This creates a feedback loop of violence and extremism," said Luke Barnes, senior research scientist at NYU Stern. "Extremist groups will use mainstream sites to spread their messages, then include an outlink to another platform where they can share more extreme content."
The study also found that far-right and far-left networks often converged in spreading narratives about victimhood or celebrating violence. The report makes recommendations for social platforms and US lawmakers, including establishing clear policies on threats and incitement, enabling users to report violations quickly, and recognizing the limits of legal remedies.
Interestingly, Barnes noted that nihilistic violent extremism may actually create opportunities for bipartisanship.
The study analyzed over 520 plots and acts of terrorism and targeted violence in the US, which is a nearly 40% increase from last year. The researchers monitored online networks across the political spectrum, including far-right, far-left, violent Islamist, and nihilistic violent extremists. They found that these groups use social media platforms to spread their messages, often using mainstream sites like X before funneling people into private platforms to coordinate further.
The report highlights the rise of "nihilistic" violent extremism, a category used by the FBI to describe attackers who don't fit into standard ideological frames and prioritize violence for its own sake. These groups now use performative shock value as a way to spread their ideology online, often referencing online communities in manifestos or on bullet casings.
"This creates a feedback loop of violence and extremism," said Luke Barnes, senior research scientist at NYU Stern. "Extremist groups will use mainstream sites to spread their messages, then include an outlink to another platform where they can share more extreme content."
The study also found that far-right and far-left networks often converged in spreading narratives about victimhood or celebrating violence. The report makes recommendations for social platforms and US lawmakers, including establishing clear policies on threats and incitement, enabling users to report violations quickly, and recognizing the limits of legal remedies.
Interestingly, Barnes noted that nihilistic violent extremism may actually create opportunities for bipartisanship.
they're like a virus spreading online, exploiting trigger events to get people hyped about violence 
and it's not just one side of the spectrum either, far-right and far-left groups are colliding over victimhood narratives 
what's crazy is that some of these nihilistic groups might actually be creating a space for bipartisanship? wouldn't have thought that'd be possible 
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. And the fact that mainstream sites are getting exploited is just crazy. Can't we just get rid of these platforms for good?
I think its wild how extremist groups are milking these high-profile violence incidents to get new followers online 
They're like, super strategic about it too - they use mainstream sites to spread their message, then funnel people into private platforms where they can get more extreme stuff 
. It's like a game of cat and mouse, with social media platforms being the stage 
. And what's crazy is that some groups are even using performative shock value to spread their ideology online - it's like they're trying to get a reaction from people 
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, as Luke Barnes mentioned 
. If we can figure out ways to tackle this nihilistic violent extremism without making things worse, we might actually create some common ground between the left and right 
. And the fact that they're using mainstream sites like X before funnelling people into private platforms is just genius (not really) - I mean, who needs nuance when you can just create a nice big feedback loop of violence and extremism? 
. And can we talk about how easy it is for these groups to spread their messages online? Like, seriously, how many of us have fallen down the rabbit hole and ended up sharing some extremist content without even realizing it? 
It's just crazy...
. and whats even crazier is that theyre using social media platforms to spread their ideologies, often on mainstream sites before funnelling people into private platforms 
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. like, imagine if both sides could come together to address the root causes of this violence and prevent it from happening in the first place. its a pretty radical idea, but idk... maybe its time we rethink our approach to dealing with extremism 
online, using "trigger events" to recruit new followers 
and spread their ideologies 
. It's crazy how these groups use shock value to spread their message online, referencing online communities in manifestos or on bullet casings 
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... these extremist groups are like vampires - they thrive on violence & hate 
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. It's like they have a team of expert manipulators who know exactly which buttons to press to get people riled up & on board with their twisted agendas 
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- Bob Marley (not related to this topic tho 
And yeah, it makes total sense that they'd use mainstream sites like X to spread their message before funnelling people into private platforms where things get really extreme 
these groups are masters of manipulation, using shock value and performative outrage to spread their toxic ideologies online. it's like they're creating a feedback loop of violence and extremism, and it's terrifying 
it's like, no, let's just get rid of extremism altogether 
I'm really worried about this. These extremist groups are super smart at using social media to spread hate and recruit new followers after big attacks happen. It's like they're playing a sick game of "before" and "after" - one day they're all sad and upset, the next day they're calling for more violence and recruiting new people to join their cause. 
. The fact that these groups can use mainstream sites before sending people to more extreme platforms is just crazy - it's like they're exploiting the whole social media thing for their own gain 
. these groups are using social media to justify their ideologies and call for more violence - it's like they're creating this toxic feedback loop that's hard to break 
. And the fact that researchers found a nearly 40% increase in plots and acts of terrorism this year is just wild 
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. And then they have the nerve to say that nihilistic violent extremism can bring people together? 
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. Let's not forget that we're all in this together