The Online Network of Ethnonationalism: Exploring the discursive frames of the extreme right in Finland

Abstract: This thesis explores the structure and discursive frames in the rhetoric of the online extreme right network in Finland. Departing from the constraints of identity and ideology, the individual nodes are seen as a part of a network that mobilizes on the basis of shared discourses. Social network analysis is utilized to explore the structure and connections of the extreme right. This is followed by qualitative content analysis of the main self-identification doctrines that provides further insight on the shared principal issues in the network. These are understood through collective action frames and framing process analysis that shows how these groups understand their external reality and construct their political communication strategically to mobilize supporters. This results in identifying the main shared discursive frames of the network as populism, anti-modernism, ethnonationalism, and xenohobia. Even if there are peculiar differences between the groups, ethno-nationalist xenophobia and anti-establishment populism is the dominating discursive master frame of the extreme right network in Finland. Furthermore, the findings suggest that even though the Finnish extreme right is only loosely connected nationally, the majority have global connections. This emphasizes the transnationalization of the extreme right over the internet and urges for more research on these social structures.