Super- (and hyper-) posters on extremist forums

Abstract

This paper examines patterns of posting behavior on extremist online forums in order to empirically identify and define classes of highly active “super-posters”. Using a unique dataset of 8 far-right, 7 Salafi-jihadist, and 2 Incel forums, totaling 12,569,639 unique posts, the study operates a three-dimensional analysis of super-posters (Gini coefficient, Fisher-Jenks algorithm, network analysis) that sheds light on the type of influence at play in these online spaces. Our study shows that extremist forums consistently display four statistically distinguishable classes of posters from the least active “hypo-posters” to the most active “hyper-posters”, as well as demonstrating that, while hyper-posters’ activity is remarkable, they are not necessarily the most central or connected members of extremist forums. These findings, which suggest that extremist forums are places where both minority and majority influences occur, not only advance our understanding of a key locus of online radicalization; they also pave the way for sounder interventions to monitor and disrupt the phenomenon.