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Helping Communities Confront Extremism: A Role for Librarians in Debunking the Claims of Extremists on Social Media

Helping Communities Confront Extremism: A Role for Librarians in Debunking the Claims of Extremists on Social Media

Roderic Vassie
Copyright: © 2022 |Pages: 21
ISBN13: 9781799883630|ISBN10: 1799883639|ISBN13 Softcover: 9781799883647|EISBN13: 9781799883654
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-8363-0.ch004
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MLA

Vassie, Roderic. "Helping Communities Confront Extremism: A Role for Librarians in Debunking the Claims of Extremists on Social Media." Handbook of Research on the Role of Libraries, Archives, and Museums in Achieving Civic Engagement and Social Justice in Smart Cities, edited by Mohamed Taher, IGI Global, 2022, pp. 82-102. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-8363-0.ch004

APA

Vassie, R. (2022). Helping Communities Confront Extremism: A Role for Librarians in Debunking the Claims of Extremists on Social Media. In M. Taher (Ed.), Handbook of Research on the Role of Libraries, Archives, and Museums in Achieving Civic Engagement and Social Justice in Smart Cities (pp. 82-102). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-8363-0.ch004

Chicago

Vassie, Roderic. "Helping Communities Confront Extremism: A Role for Librarians in Debunking the Claims of Extremists on Social Media." In Handbook of Research on the Role of Libraries, Archives, and Museums in Achieving Civic Engagement and Social Justice in Smart Cities, edited by Mohamed Taher, 82-102. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-8363-0.ch004

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Abstract

False claims disseminated on social media by extremists can convince ordinary people not just to sit in their armchairs and rage at the violence of one side or another but to leave their homes either to riot at the Capitol in Washington, DC, for example, or to sneak over international borders in order to join the so-called “Islamic State.” Governments' softer counterextremist policies may focus on messaging but tend to overlook the specific claims aimed at those vulnerable to radicalisation. Furthermore, general lack of trust in officialdom can undermine its messaging or even serve to bolster the extremist “us and them” narrative. This chapter suggests that, by harnessing their specialist information literacy knowledge and skills, librarians can build on their positive social capital and assume an active role in developing in their users the critical thinking and awareness necessary to identify and expose misleading extremist propaganda, thereby helping to make their local communities safer.

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