Julia Ebner: The extremism researcher on bot armies and online hate
It’s an invisible war raging out there in the digital sphere. While we scroll through our feeds, like long-forgotten acquaintances, or get annoyed by angry comments, they are already hard at work: armies of bots, controlled by extremists, trolls and political strategists. No one in Europe has scrutinised this phenomenon in recent years as meticulously as Julia Ebner. The Austrian extremism researcher, who works at a leading research institute for strategic dialogue in London, has been warning for years about the systematic infiltration of our social networks. And her latest analyses are more alarming than ever.
The method: How bots are taking over our minds
It would be too simplistic to assume that every hate campaign is simply the work of a few angry individuals. What Julia Ebner and her team uncover in their undercover investigations is highly professional, organised manipulation. It's no longer about individual trolls, but about bot armies that control thousands of accounts simultaneously. They don't just post radical slogans; they interact, they amplify each other, and in doing so, give extreme minorities an artificial reach they would never have in the real world. The tactic is always similar: in the comment sections under posts about refugees, vaccinations, or elections, masses of identical narratives suddenly appear. For Julia Ebner, this is a clear pattern: "What looks like a spontaneous outpouring of public sentiment is often the result of carefully planned digital attacks," she summarises the findings of her undercover investigations. What's particularly insidious: the bots are learning. They mimic human behaviour, first posting harmless pictures of cats to build trust, and then they strike.
The deadly impact of likes and shares
Many still underestimate the explosive power of this digital manipulation. But Julia Ebner has impressively documented in her books, such as "Going Dark" or "The Rage", how online agitation translates into real-world violence. She highlights how terrorist organisations and far-right groups use the same algorithms to recruit vulnerable young people. The platforms themselves become accomplices, because their algorithms reward outrage and radicalism – they push the worst content to the top of timelines because it generates the most interaction. A particularly worrying example is so-called deepfakes. In a world where you soon won't be able to trust anyone on video or audio, Julia Ebner sees a new dimension of disinformation heading our way. "We are facing a severe test for democracy," she warns. Because when facts no longer matter, in the end, only the loudest and the most unscrupulous win.
What can we do? The expert has clear demands
But Julia Ebner wouldn't be the most distinguished researcher in this field if she only offered gloomy predictions. She demands that tech companies finally implement radical transparency. Deleting a few obvious hate posts is not enough. The algorithms must be overhauled; they must no longer reward the spread of extremism. Furthermore, we need:
- More digital literacy in the population: We must learn to recognise manipulative content and question it critically.
- Independent research: So far, platforms like Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) grant far too little access to their data.
- International cooperation: Digital manipulation does not stop at borders. Only if countries like Austria, Germany, and the EU act together can we stop these virtual mercenaries.
The work of Julia Ebner is an indispensable compass in these chaotic times. She delves into the darkest corners of the internet to show us all what is brewing down there. We should take her warnings seriously – because the battle for control over our minds has long since begun. And we are all in the middle of it, whether we like it or not.