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How Terrorgram Radicalizes Young Men: The Tepláreň Bar Shooting through the 3N Theory of Radicalization Lens
Rudišová, Alžběta ; Charvát, Jan (advisor) ; Kubátová, Hana (referee)
This thesis focuses on the Telegram network of channels that is commonly referred to as Terrorgram and the methods and strategies this network employs to radicalize young men on the internet. To do this, the thesis utilizes Kruglanski, Bélanger and Gunaratna's 3N theory of radicalization which identifies three primary forces that contribute to radicalization. A need for significance, a narrative which normalizes violence as a legitimate means to address grievance, and a network to introduce or further instill this narrative. The thesis identifies the specific ways in which Terrogram utilizes these three forces in the Collected writings of Terrogram, a set of three manifestos summarizing the thoughts and strategies of the network. It argues that Terrogram attempts to strengthen young men's perceived significance loss through introducing anti-semitic conspiracy theories, disapproves of named and formally organized networks, and presents violence as the only legitimate solution to healing a supposedly degenerate world. Finally, the thesis studies the manifesto of the Tepláreň bar shooter who identifies with Terrogram within the writing, applying the theoretical constructs previously described to a Terrogram-related text in a case study. The thesis concludes that these techniques, that the perpetrator...
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Involuntary celibacy in a natural habitat: incel forums, identity and race
Báča, Václav ; Collins, Jonathan (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
Primarily active in online spaces, involuntary celibates (incels) are mostly male individuals who experience frustration through their perceived inability to establish romantic or sexual relationship. In recent years incels received increased public attention because of acts of mass violence, perpetrated by self-identified incels. The thesis uses Robert Kozinet's methodology of online netnography to examine the intersection of involuntary celibate identity and race. Utilising Van Veelen's Integrative Model of Social Identification, the project focuses on the construction of incel identity among the largest incel forum - incels.is. Providing an inductive analysis of the race-related content collected directly from the forum, based in the principles of Charmanaz's Constructivist Grounded Theory, the study investigates the construction of incel identities, uncovering the nuances behind both individual and collective incel experiences. Concluding the findings of the analysis, the thesis contends that race is the central feature through and around which incel identity is constructed among non-white incels. Simultaneously, it argues that for different subgroups of incels, the central feature differs, largely depending on individual context and background. Furthermore, the thesis puts forward the concept...
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Comparative study of State and Citizen Perceptions on Social Media Security in the Czech Republic
Skřivánková, Andrea ; Collins, Jonathan (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
This diploma thesis draws attention to a highly relevant and important topic, i.e. cybersecurity on social media. The pace of technology development and trends is relentless and society often fails to react properly to these changes, or even to notice them. This carries with it the risk of harm from unawareness or carelessness. Social media became a daily part of human interaction and often a space for sharing personal information, and as these activities moved into the online world, so did crime. No one wants to experience harassment or theft, but the internet and social media provide a much greater opportunity and scope. People are at risk not only of being attacked on the street, but also from the other side of the world, and it makes catching the attacker very difficult. This thesis analyses how this problem is perceived by the state of the Czech Republic in this case (and additionally the EU), which should protect its laws and institutions, and on the other hand, by people as ordinary users of these platforms, who may find all the existing technology & regulatory measures confusing/overwhelming/nonsufficient/ etc. The thesis describes how theory differs from day-to-day practice, the most common cyber threats and the means to counter and prevent them.
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Russian information warfare in Slovakia
Juhászová, Bianka ; Charvát, Jan (advisor) ; Kubátová, Hana (referee)
The thesis is devoted to a detailed analysis of the impact of the Russian information war on the Slovak information environment. Emphasis is placed on current data in this area and the thesis focuses on information operations after 2022. The themes and narratives that Russia uses for influence in its information warfare are examined. The aim is to provide a comprehensive picture of what themes and narratives Russia is using to manipulate the Slovak audience and a framework to analyze these attacks. Using this framework, it is possible to examine the themes of Russian disinformation in Slovakia and the goals that Russia may pursue through these information operations. The thesis also provides a theoretical foundation on information warfare, its development in the Russian Federation, and the main themes of its current form. In the practical part, the theoretical knowledge will be applied to the analysis of two specific cases of information operations from the period of the election campaign in Slovakia in 2023. The methodological approach includes a content analysis of Slovak media, social networks, disinformation websites and platforms. This will be complemented with data from various opinion polls and academic studies of the Slovak information space.
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Prevention of extremism and terrorism in schools
Vaňková, Lucie ; Kovaříková, Miroslava (advisor) ; Marádová, Eva (referee)
The thesis focuses on the issue of prevention of extremism and terrorism on soft targets in selected secondary schools in the Czech Republic. The aim of the thesis is to find out what measures are being taken to protect against extremism and terrorism in selected secondary schools and whether there is sufficient funds are spent on the prevention of extremism and terrorism. The structure of the thesis is divided into theoretical and practical parts. In the theoretical part, the basic concepts are defined with the use of research of selected textual sources, the factors influencing the inclination to extremism and terrorism are described and the concept of combating extremism and terrorism in the environment of secondary schools is presented. The practical research part is empirical in nature and deals with the description of the implementation of quantitative research, its analysis and interpretation of the data obtained in order to obtain information on the practical approach of principals and teaching staff of selected secondary schools in the Czech Republic to the issue of preventing extremism and terrorism. The data collection was conducted in the form of a written electronic questionnaire, where a questionnaire consisting of 23 closed, open or combined questions was used as an instrument. The...
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Blue Box
Šprincl, Marie ; Jančík, Alexandr (referee) ; Mazanec, Martin (advisor)
The bachelor's thesis Blue Box follows a long-term project that began in 2013, when I was on my way to the east coast of the USA. I began creating a mystical Blue Box story around the mythology and ideology of xenophobic movements, after a mystical experience in New York's Orthodox Jewish Quarter and attending a Ku Klux Klan public gathering in Gettysburg. In thematic terms, my work is a universal report about the dangers of extremism in any form, focusing on the essence and mechanisms of its origin and spread.
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Contemporary American right-wing extremism using the example of the Proud Boys with a focus on the ideology of violence
Šaník, Jan ; Charvát, Jan (advisor) ; Dopieralla, Jakub (referee)
This thesis examines contemporary American extremism, using the example of the far-right, all-male organization Proud Boys, whose members refer to themselves as "Western chauvinists." Thesis analyzes the group in terms of its history, organization, and hierarchy. Paying special attention to the group's ideology, the thesis aims to place the group in the larger context of American society and to name the factors that influenced the group's direction in terms of its ideological grounding in violence. In this thesis, I will defend the thesis that violence plays a privileged role that co-creates the ideology of the group as a whole. The thesis is designed to provide an answer to the question "what role does violence play in the Proud Boys?" Through an in-depth qualitative content analysis, this thesis discusses the relationship between violence and the ideology of the Proud Boys and explains how violence contributes a unifying role. In general, this study contributes to an understanding of both the motivations and behaviors of the Proud Boys group and contributes to the larger discourse on extremism in contemporary America.
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