challenging anti-socialist ideology online. One was that they associated Corbyn with positive general characteristics: “He seems to be about common sense and decency and so very normal/nice” (#422), “he is sensible, clear, knowledgeable & decent” (#606), “In my view he just preaches common sense” (#22591).
A second strategy was to use the strategy of discursive dialectical reversal: the argument made in this strategy is that not Corbyn, but the Tories are extremist, radical, violent, hard-right, and dangerous. Figure 9.8 shows an example.
A third strategy was to use satire and humour to ridicule anti-socialist ideology. It is based on the insight that ideologies are often irrational and emotional. They are difficult to challenge by rational arguments. The hashtag #suggestacorbynsmear that emerged on Twitter on 31 August 2015, and was used within 24 hours more than 11,000 times<sup>4</sup> is an example. Examples are: “Jeremy Corbyn shares the letter ‘n’ with Stalin and Satan, and the letters ‘e’ and ‘r’ with Hitler! #suggestacorbynsmear” (#5229); “Jeremy Corbyn was born in 1949. Stalin was alive in 1949. Coincidence? I think not. #suggestacorbynsmear” (#5251).
Ideologies are semiotic structures that justify domination. Twitter limits linguistic expression to 140 characters. User-generated ideology such as online redbaiting therefore has to compress ideology. User-generated ideology is the use of digital media for producing and spreading semiotic structures that justify domination by distorting reality, misrepresenting it, or inventing false representations of reality. By making claims, insults, and personal attacks without underlying arguments and justifications, users compress ideology on Twitter into 140 characters. A feature of many anti-socialist tweets was that they made claims about Corbyn without arguments and proof.
Chapter Nine | Social Media and the Capitalist Crisis
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Social Media Ideology #2: Red Scare 2.03
4 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/Jeremy\_Corbyn/11836904/Twitters-funniest-smear-attacks-on-Jeremy-Corbyn-as-suggestacorbynsmear-goes-viral.html