Workshop lecture by Christian Schwarzenegger

ZeMKI member Professor Dr. Christian Schwarzenegger gives a lecture at the workshop “Continuity and Innovation of the Far Right: Practices, Symbols and Discourses” on the topic: “Eternal values”, latest tools: The far right’s use of generative AI for meme-driven propaganda.

The far right has long used memes as a tool for political agitation, leveraging edgy humor to disguise malicious content under the guise of “it’s only supposed to be fun.” This well-researched strategic communication practice enables the simultaneous sharing of hostility and the distancing from its implications. With the advent of generative AI, a new layer has been added to the far right’s memetic strategies and metapolitical efforts. Image generators not only allow for the large-scale production of memetic content, as some have noted, but also help establish and propagate a distinct aesthetic and style for far-right ideology. At the same time, these tools allow far-right actors to claim their memes are rooted in cutting-edge technology and that the “truths” they present are derived from calculations, statistics, or global knowledge, thereby framing them as beyond contestation. Moreover, because the generated content is often intentionally easy to identify as AI-produced, traditional practices like fact-checking, myth-busting, and debunking become less effective. This strategy immunizes the content against countermeasures, creating a new challenge for those seeking to combat extremist messaging. Elon Musk’s recent call for his followers to use AI Grok to generate Pepe memes serves as a clear example of how the playfulness of far-right agitation can be weaponized to normalize extremist symbolism and ideology. Such acts blur the lines between humor and propaganda, further embedding far-right narratives into public discourse.