Baden-Württemberg raises the alarm: Dangerous assassin fans online!

Baden-Württemberg raises the alarm: Dangerous assassin fans online!

Christchurch, Neuseeland - The State Constitutional Protection of Baden-Württemberg warns of the so-called "Attenter fan scene", which is considered a serious threat. This scene, which consists in particular of young, partly dismissal men, has organized itself in right -wing extremist chat groups and forums to admire assassins and their acts of violence. Baden-Württemberg Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (CDU) emphasizes that it is necessary to learn more about the structures of this dangerous movement. The focus on the "Attenter fan scene" was placed on the agenda of the Interior Ministers' Conference in Bremerhaven, which will be discussed from Thursday. The proposal for thematization comes from Baden-Württemberg.

A current development is that the members of the scene express inhumane views and are often very young, violent venues. The State Office for the Protection of the Constitution describes this as an alarming novelty in the right -wing extremist scene. An example of this problem is a 14-year-old from Baden-Württemberg, who expressed killing fantasies against Jews in a chat group and against a teacher, which resulted in an investigation due to disturbing public peace by threatening crimes.

radicalization and imitation effects

The "Attenter fan scene" is considered part of the current radicalization processes and is also a source of imitation effects. The roots of this movement go back to the right -wing extremist acts of violence such as the assassination attempt by Christchurch 2019, in which 51 people lost their lives. The perpetrator, Brenton Tarrant, is considered a model for this fan scene because he propagated a far -reaching ideology of hatred and violence on social media, which has inspired many imitators. Examples of this are the attacks by Stephan Balliet in Halle (Saale) and Payton Gendron in Buffalo, USA.

A central aspect of the ideology of this scene is the "victory culture", a right-wing extremist online subculture that focuses on propagating violent actions against the democratic system. This subculture has achieved cult status among young people who act in anonymous online groups. Particularly by platforms such as Telegram, the sharing of propaganda material and assassination videos is promoted, which promotes cynical tone.

The role of the Internet

The distribution of extremist content is not random. The Internet offers extremists the opportunity to spread the fast and anonymous spread of their messages. Digitally communicating young people are particularly susceptible to radical ideas because they are often active in social networks and forums. This enables uncontrolled information transfer and facilitates networking. Psychologists and extremism researchers discuss the role of the Internet in radicalization processes, with some assuming that it is mainly acting as a catalyst for pre -existing settings.

The complication in right -wing extremist content is often subtle, which makes it difficult to recognize such propaganda. Extremist actors use emotional addresses about videos and pictures to win young people. These strategies are target group-specific, whereby different topics are deliberately chosen for different age and gender groups in order to maximize effectiveness. Such dynamics make a comprehensive analysis and understanding of the "assassin fan scene" in order to effectively counter the radicalization.