How U.S. white nationalists organized a conference in plain view on Twitter and Telegram

[Nevilledog]

Link to tweet

Tweet text:
Jared Holt
@jaredlholt
New: White nationalist activists used throwaway accounts on Twitter and dedicated channels on Telegram to coordinate and promote a conference that featured Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) last month.

I took a look at how they did it while avoiding moderation

How U.S. white nationalists organized a conference in plain view on Twitter and Telegram
Throwaway Twitter accounts spread ticket links and propaganda, while event logistics were coordinated on Telegram
medium.com
12:37 PM · Mar 8, 2021

https://medium.com/dfrlab/how-u-s-white-nationalists-organized-a-conference-in-plain-view-on-twitter-and-telegram-2adb2c77ebbd

White nationalist youth movement activists in the United States promoted, coordinated, and retailed tickets for a February 26 conference using Twitter and the messaging app Telegram almost exclusively. After a surprise appearance from Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), the conference drew additional attention for its speakers’ extremist rhetoric.

Spearheaded by anti-Semitic and racist online broadcaster Nicholas Fuentes, the America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC) was the first major gathering of the country’s leading white nationalist youth movement since the insurrectionist attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6. The “America First” conference featured speeches from far-right political and media figures who were either present in Washington, D.C., during the riot or have spread falsehoods alleging that the 2020 election was rigged to give President Joe Biden an illegitimate victory. The DFRLab noted before the conference that organizers were using a small handful of social media accounts to distribute stylized propaganda ahead of the conference and to direct users toward a website selling tickets that ranged from $100 to $10,000 in price.

A closer examination of the digital activity preceding the conference found that organizers relied almost exclusively on Twitter, as well as Telegram, a messaging app that has gained popularity among far-right internet communities, to distribute promotional material and communicate with ticketholders. Private information, like the event location, was distributed via email.

The DFRLab used a combination of social media analytical tools and manual reviews of social media activity to assess online activity during a one-month window preceding the conference, spanning from January 26 to February 26, 2021. Except for Fuentes’ own live-broadcasted podcast and a handful of threads on forum boards with pro-Trump bents, activity on other social platforms was practically nonexistent.

*snip*

[TreasonousBastard]

1. What's with the dark complexions in a group of white nationalists?

[Hugh_Lebowski]

3. Obviously it's distasteful and we all dislike them, but white nationalists are allowed to have their

their views, and they're allowed have whatever gatherings and conferences they want to here in these United States of America.

As long as they don't break the law, that's how Free Speech works.

We as voters are also free to vote out assholes like Paul Gosar, which I sincerely hope happens at the next opportunity.