Dr. Aaron Winter

Aaron Winter

Dr. Aaron Winter (BA Hons. York; MA Warwick, DPhil Sussex) is Senior Lecturer in Sociology (Race and Anti-Racism), Deputy Doctoral Director and Director of the Centre for Alternatives to Social and Economic Inequalities (CASEI) at Lancaster University. He previously taught at the Universities of Brighton, Sussex, Abertay and East London. His research is on the…

online, extremism, apps, instagram, Facebook, google, linkedin, x, twitter

Mainstreaming Hate: How Right-Wing Extremism Became a Digital and Political Force

Written by Elisa Garbil – 22.05.2025 In recent years, right-wing extremism has evolved from fringe ideology into a persistent force that influences public discourse, political behaviour, and even policy. The transition from the margins to the mainstream hasn’t happened by accident. It’s the result of a complex interplay between online radicalisation, conspiracy thinking, and the…

Episode 233: What Can Sociology Say about Right-Wing Extremism and the Mainstreaming of Racism and the Far-Right with Aaron Winter

Today we are cutting through the noise to tackle one of the most urgent and uncomfortable realities of our time: how hate has gone mainstream. From anonymous forums to prime-time politics, far-right extremism is no longer a fringe threat — it’s a digital, cultural, and political force shaping our democracies. Dominic and Aaron discuss:  Dr. Aaron…

BlackPilled - Meadhbh Park

BlackPilled: Masculinity, Media and Incels – Méadhbh Park

Written by Elisa Garbil – 16.05.2025 A great explanation of what incels actually feel and think, which is often forgotten. It is important to understand people in order to help them, and Meadhbh has done that perfectly in her book BlackPilled. In addition, Meadhbh love for movies is incorporated into this book, which is a…

Meadhbh Park

Meadhbh (Meave) Park

Meadhbh Park is a researcher and practitioner focused on the manosphere – the loose network of online communities that promote rigid views on gender roles and misogyny – specifically in relation to young people. Her work spans multiple countries, including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Germany and the United States, where she has contributed to…

Red Pill, Incels, Matrix

The Red Pill and Its Influence on Modern Misogyny: A Deep Dive into Digital Movements and Male Supremacy

Written by Elisa Garbil – 17.04.2025 In recent years, Red Pill has become a term synonymous with controversial beliefs about gender relations, often tied to online communities advocating for male supremacy and misogyny. Originally drawn from the 1999 film The Matrix, where the protagonist takes the red pill to see the harsh truth of reality,…

Episode 224: Incels and the RedPill in Relation to Teenagers and Young People with Meadhbh Park

Today Dominic hosts Meadhbh Park! They discuss RedPill versus BlackPill and what the differences and common conceptions are. Moreover, they dive into reasons young men might fall into the manosphere and incel groups, and Meadhbh talks about her new book Blackpilled: Masculinity, Media and Incels which has come out recently! Meadhbh Park is a researcher and practitioner focused…

Sander van der Linden

Sander van der Linden

Sander van der Linden, Ph.D., is Professor of Social Psychology in Society and Director of the Cambridge Social Decision-Making Lab in the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge. He has won numerous awards for his research on human judgment, communication, and decision-making, including the Rising Star Award from the Association for Psychological Science…

Episode 183: Misinformation, the US Elections, and the role of Misogyny with Sander van der Linden

This week we dive into the role of misinformation with Sander van der Linden. We discuss what effect the British government could have with their promise of a crackdown on extreme misogyny. Moreover, with Sander’s background in Psychology, we dive into the question as to why people believe misinformation and what might be done to…

man looking at phone

Misinformation and Misogyny: How two seemingly different areas are interlinked

Written by Elisa Garbil – 04.11.2024 With the US elections around the corner, and the September decision by the British government to make extreme misogyny a crime, we dive into misinformation and its implications with Professor Sander van der Linden in episode 182. Misinformation explained Misinformation is misleading or incorrect information, it can exist without…