Screen Time: Battle for Reality S2E3 — Sharia Creep

January 24, 2024

After Alexandre Bisonette was arrested for murdering five Muslim men in cold blood, investigators looked into his internet history and found that he’d fallen down a far-right rabbit hole.

In this episode, we take a step back from the pandemic to tell a story about online extremism, the political utility of conspiracy theories, and how misinformation can lead to bloodshed.

With the help of Canada's Special Representative on Combating Islamophobia, Amira Elghawaby, and sociology professor Jasmin Zine, we unpack the cultural impact of the 2017 Quebec mosque shooting and M103, as well as the ‘Islamophobia Industry’ that has rapidly developed online. Finally, Claire Wardle walks us through ‘The Trumpet of Amplification’ which shows us how conspiracy theories like those around M103 end up in the mainstream.

Audio courtesy of the Rebel News Youtube channel.