From Echo Chambers to Digital Campfires The Making of an Online Community of Hate in Stormfront

This chapter examines the intricate relationship between social media, political extremism, and online hate, focusing on the notorious White Supremacist online forum Stormfront.org. Moving beyond the influential “echo chamber” theory - which suggests that online extremism stems from cycles of one-sided arguments among isolated individuals - the chapter introduces a novel perspective, informed by Émile Durkheim’s theories on community formation. This argues for understanding online extremism as rooted in a form of online “rituals”: Moments of shared attention that create a sense of common identity against an out-group. This shifts the focus from rational deliberation to social and emotional processes. Online spaces such as Stormfront can be understood as “digital campfires,” where interaction rituals cultivate a collective worldview and foster an intimate, collective identity among members.