University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-2003 White noise : the political uses of internet technology by right-wing extremist groups. Alison D. Dagnes University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Dagnes, Alison D., "White noise : the political uses of internet technology by right-wing extremist groups." (2003). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 2359. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/2359 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WHITE NOISE: THE POLITICAL USES OF INTERNET TECHNOLOGY BY RIGHT-WING EXTREMIST GROUPS A Dissertation Presented by ALISON D DAGNES Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY September 2003 Political Science Graduate Program © Copyright by Alison D. Dagnes 2003 All Rights Reserved WHITE NOISE: THE POLITICAL USES OF INTERNET TECHNOLOGY BY RIGHT-WING EXTREMIST GROUPS A Dissertation Presented by ALISON D DAGNES Approved as to style and content by: Political Science Department DEDICATION To Pete ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This work would never have flown were it not for the wise assistance and attentive support of my dissertation committee. Great thanks go to: Dr. Erica Scharrer who has been a wonderful mentor and friend; Dr. Jeffrey Sedgwick who has been one of the most fantastic, kind and insightful professors walking the planet; and Dr. Jerry Mileur who, with great compassion and thought, has helped me to achieve every professional goal I set for myself. Without his generosity of time, spirit, and attention I would never be where I am today, nor as happy. Words cannot begin to express my gratitude. In addition, I would also like to thank those who were so supportive during my graduate career. My wonderful parents provided loving support, unwavering encouragement, and the occasional carrot to keep me trotting on the path. My terrifically compassionate and supportive friends kept me happy and centered through trying times. Monica, my closest friend and darling sister, has shown nothing but a mammoth ability to lift my spirits and keep me going. Without her I would be unimaginably miserable. Finally and most importantly, I want to thank my family: My long-suffering and ever-loving husband Peter deserves more than a Bronze Star for his devotion and encouragement, and our daughter Madeline has brought so much sunshine into my life I need sunglasses every day of the week. Thank you Pete, Mads and Gus the Wonder Dog: You are my world. v ABSTRACT WHITE NOISE: THE POLITICAL USES OF INTERNET TECHNOLOGY BY RIGHT-WING EXTREMIST GROUPS SEPTEMBER 2003 ALISON D DAGNES, BA, ST. LAWRENCE UNIVERSITY Ph D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Jerome Mileur The Internet helps right-wing extremist groups reach and connect with the American public because their message of anti-government sentiment is an attractive one. the As nation continues to grow increasingly disaffected with the political system as a whole, the anti-government message of the extremist Right will prove to be progressively more attractive to those who are not extreme. History has shown that the radical Right has always tapped into the mainstream to reach the disaffected, and ideological surveys show that many of the position stands concerning the size and scope of the federal government are shared by both the extreme and the moderate. Media framing, the process by which articles and features are shaped to provide an understanding context, affords the media one way to describe the extreme right while it offers the extreme right another way of describing themselves. When the extreme takes to the Internet to describe itself, outside the mainstream broadcast media, it is able to form a message that appeals to the public because of its seeming moderation, attention to hot-button issues, and similarities to conventional negative politics. vi When all is said and done, the Internet simply provides a new forum for the disaffected and politically angry. This forum, however, is incredibly potent in its abilities to deliver a message quickly, affordably, - and most importantly - privately. This opens the door to potentially dangerous political communication between potentially violent and increasingly disaffected people. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABSTRACT j LIST OF TABLES x CHAPTER 1 . INTRODUCTION { Group Labeling and Definitions 4 Research Design 5 Chapter Outline 8 Goals of This Study 12 2. HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE EXTREME RIGHT 14 The Ku Klux Klan 15 Neo Nazi Organizations 25 Militias 34 Christian Identity Assemblies 37 Conclusions 40 3. RIGHT WING IDEOLOGY 42 The Foundations of Liberalism 44 The Emerging Conservatism 51 The New Conservatism 57 Differences Along the Conservative Spectrum 67 Conclusions 71 4. MEDIA FRAMING 74 Framing 75 Extremist Group Characterizations 79 First Amendment Frames 80 Legal Suits 82 Criminal Connections 84 White Separatist Framing Effects 86 Conclusions 88 viii 1 5 . LEGAL AND LEGISLATIVE ISSUES 90 First Amendment Protections 90 Post-Expression Accountability and Incitement 90 Anonymity and Internet Speech 95 Legislative Actions on Internet Speech 98 Arguments For and Against Government Regulation 100 Conclusions 103 6. SITE WEB USE AND EVALUATION 104 The Web Sites of White Separatist Groups 104 The Triumph of the Aryan Race 1 1 Jewish Evilness and Wrongdoing 114 The Challenges of Extremist Content 117 Conclusions 119 7 . MONITORING AGENCIES 121 Anti-Hate Activists and Law Enforcement Personnel 121 The Issues Confronting the Extreme Right 126 The Changing Face of the Movement 134 Conclusions 138 8. CONCLUSIONS 140 Research Fit Within the Political Science Field 141 On-Going Developments 151 Consequences of This Research 153 BIBLIOGRAPHY 157 IX LIST OF TABLES Table 1 73 x CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION When the Internet emerged on the American landscape, many said it would revolutionize the world. In a great number of ways it has, opening the door to an immense communications network previously unimaginable. In the area of politics, the Internet has been a positive force for mobilizing the American citizenry through information availability, web-Astroturf campaigning, and message dissemination, all of which happen that now politicians are quickly and easily connected to the body politic. It follows that this connection born of the information technology revolution also increases the ability of social movements to connect with the public. This, then, increases the possibility for radical social organizations to progress beyond the fringe of American politics, because they can reach the mainstream more easily with their messages in the privacy of their own homes. A case in point is the extremist Right. White separatist groups have used the Internet to spread their message to the world and mobilize politically among their brethren. But the most significant use of the Internet by these groups has been to recruit new members and attract a wider and younger base of support in the general public. Through sophisticated political communication techniques, members of the extreme Right use the Internet to package themselves in a way that appears less extreme and more acceptable to the mainstream. White separatists touch on the fears of moderate Americans and capitalize on the “politically incorrect” sentiments of the American 1 voters. Thus, the Internet helps right-wing extremist groups to reach the mainstream because their message of anti-government sentiment is attractive, even to people who are not extremists themselves. This has not happened in a vacuum, nor has it happened solely because of Internet technology. Historically, moderate Americans have been swept into the fervor of extremist sentiment due to social events or political changes. From the early days of the nation’s Founding to the present, jingoistic behavior on the part of the body politic has been wrapped in a patriotic nationalism to excuse the hatefulness of the message. Another long-standing American characteristic is the mistrust of our public power and government. We are a nation founded on the idea that individuals cannot be trusted with power; and as a citizenry we carry this suspicion with us during election years and times of political crisis. Discrimination and anti-government attitudes are therefore not new concepts in American political development. Yet the thunder of anti-government sentiment appears to be growing louder, and the most vociferous source of this thunder comes from the extreme Right. Paranoid about conspiracies and sure of impending disaster, right-wing extremist groups are readying themselves for revolution through political mobilization. Through the Internet they are reaching out to America. This study examines the following features of the radical right to show that the American web-surfing, voting public may be ripe for the increased influence of white separatists: First, the history of the extreme Right shows that these groups have long developed and grown in reaction to national and international events and have appealed to the mainstream because their message has the appearance of relevance. Second, an examination of American ideology shows that moderate through extreme conservatives 2 share a similar anti-government sentiment. Yet, because the extreme Right does not trust the moderate to represent its interests, the connection between the two is a one-way street where extremists seek only to get their message to the mainstream, yet not be part of the mainstream. The radical Right eschews the conventional because it views the system to be corrupt, and it extends this view beyond the branches of government to the mainstream media as well. The third component of this study therefore concerns media representation of the radical Right.