ABSTRACT

We conduct an ethnographic content analysis to examine the social interaction and racial identity constructed through the exchange of white supremacist humor shared on three Stormfront discussion subforums. Overall, white supremacist joke sharing functioned multidimensionally as it simultaneously fostered cohesion and contention among users. By mocking political correctness and non-Whites through the circulation of humorous images and text, white supremacists establish a communal atmosphere and produce a sense of solidarity among members in a more “fun” way than conventional speeches or publications. At the same time, joke sharing may serve as a source of contention when users exchange jokes that violate collective identity norms, such as sharing “blonde jokes” that disparage White females. These findings underscore the ongoing necessity among members of the white supremacist movement to negotiate different ideological tenets. By attending to the social function of white supremacist joke sharing, insights derived from this investigation move beyond more formal social movement events such as marches and demonstrations by attending to the daily activities that white supremacists utilize to resist external threats.

摘要

我们进行了民族志内容分析，以检验通过在三个Stormfront上分享的白人至上主义幽默的交流所构建的社会互动和种族身份讨论子论坛。总体而言，白人至上主义笑话分享具有多维功能，因为它同时促进了用户之间的凝聚力和争论。白人至上主义者通过幽默的图片和文字的流传来嘲讽政治正确和非白人，以一种比传统的演讲或出版物更“有趣”的方式，在成员之间营造一种共同氛围，营造一种团结感。与此同时，当用户交换违反集体身份规范的笑话时，例如分享贬低白人女性的“金发笑话”，笑话分享可能成为争论的源头。这些发现强调了白人至上主义运动成员之间就不同的意识形态原则进行谈判的持续必要性。通过关注白人至上主义笑话分享的社会功能，