What drives support for QAnon? Evidence from a survey experiment

A growing body of research examines the extent of public support for QAnon — a conspiracy theory which purports that a cabal of Satan worshiping pedophiles is running a global child sex-trafficking ring and plotting against President Trump. However, little is known about the concomitants of support for QAnon as well as what informational cues may weaken support for the conspiracy. In this paper, we address this important gap by using original data from a nationally representative survey in addition to an embedded experiment. The results reveal that exposure to information about racist and anti-Semitic online QAnon content weakens support for QAnon,while learning about the representation of QAnon beliefs in Congress increases support for the conspiracy (though these effects diminish with the addition of a competing frame). We also find that exposure to information about the origins of QAnon, as well as the many incorrect ”Q” predictions does not shape support for QAnon. We conclude that drawing attention to the virulently racist and anti-Semitic dimensions of QAnon adherence may provide the best approach to weaken support for the conspiracy theory

MISINFORMATION OR ACTIVISM: MAPPING NETWORKED MORAL PANIC THROUGH AN ANALYSIS OF #SAVETHECHILDREN

When looking at the recent social-political history of America it is difficult to avoid references to QAnon, a widespread, conservative-leaning conspiracy that amalgamates numerous conspiracies into a single movement. Central to the movement’s growth has been a moral panic around child sex trafficking that has served as a gateway for new adherents to become exposed to broader QAnon rhetoric. QAnon’s co-optation of the #SaveTheChildren (#STC) movement exemplifies this networked moral panic and has played a major role in facilitating the spread of misinformation under a banner of moral authority. This paper explores the proponents of #SaveTheChildren on social media platform Instagram—paying particular attention to their motivations, tactics and desired outcomes—in order to explore how networked social movements build knowledge and organize in spaces that are vulnerable to the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories. Research is drawn from an inductive thematic analysis of 1,400 Instagram posts related to the #SaveTheChildren movement across 2020. Analysis illuminates how the #SaveTheChildren movement is defined more as an identity based, social-political movement rooted in moral panic— rather than one focused on truly supporting human rights. Our analysis illuminates how networked moral panics— facilitated by the affordances and tactics of social media —can bring together disparate communities to spread misinformation under the guise of activism.

An Analysis of College Students’ Perceptions on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking in Pine Bluff, Arkansas

Domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) is modern-day slavery of children and the commercial sexual abuse of children through buying, selling, or trading their sexual services. DMST is a form of child abuse. The victim can be any person of nationality, age, socioeconomic status, or gender. In America, throughout college campuses, a lot of students are not informed of domestic minor sex trafficking. When thinking about domestic minor sex trafficking, most people do not think that this crime happens in our country, better yet our state of Arkansas. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of college students attending the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff on domestic minor sex trafficking in our country and in our state of Arkansas (a crime that is growing aggressively in the United States). Fifty participants who were students attending the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff participated in the study. Participants consisted of male and female students between the ages of 18 to 25 (N = 30 Females; N = 20 Males). Survey data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel software. Participants responded to ten yes or no descriptive questions about domestic minor sex trafficking (e.g., Questions like: have you heard about domestic minor sex trafficking; and do you think child sex trafficking is an organized crime). The data yielded both quantitative and qualitative results. Results showed that female students were more knowledgeable and were more aware of DMST than males. Implications for interventions will be discussed. Further research also is suggested.

Shaping Laws

Opening with The Invisible War, a majordocumentary that engaged the public and policymakers in the United States, this chapter argues that contemporary documentaries play a unique role in public policy due to their narrative approaches—human-centered narratives that expand beyond facts and statistics and ideological sides—and the collaborative, cultural nature of the policymaking process. Documentary films can also expose social problems relegated to obscurity, or new on the cultural horizon—documentary’s monitorial function. This chapter delves into the complexities of documentary films that successfully shaped US laws through filmmakers working with legislators, policy experts, and issue advocates, forming “policy subnetworks.” The film case studies here include Sin by Silence, which changed California state law focused on incarcerated survivors of domestic violence; Semper Fi, the environmental justice story that sparked a new federal law; and Playground, an investigation of child sex trafficking in the United States that helped to shape federal and state-based laws.