Drawing on a Lacanian framework, Pasko Kisić-Merino shows how people seek ontological security online through two intertwined features: programmable feeds that reward engagement and homophilic networks that nurture a ‘love of sameness’. Together, these mechanisms convert anger and fear into a comforting sense of belonging, helping to normalise the far‑right.
He introduces the analytical concept of liebesraum—a ‘space of love’ where transgressive enjoyment swings back to symbolic ‘correction’, keeping users hooked while hardening exclusion. Using the 2021 Capitol riot and Trump’s 2024 victory, Pasko Kisić-Merino illustrates how platforms amplify grievance and faux agency, revealing how politics are increasingly manufactured through spectacle‑driven security.
- Author: Pasko Kisić-Merino
- Title of article: Liebesraum: Social media as a space for the ontological (in)securitisation of the far-right
- Link to article: Liebesraum: Social media as a space for the ontological (in)securitisation of the far-right | Journal of Digital Social Research