“Drop a Bomb on Them . . . and Problem Solved!” An Analysis of Poverty Discourse on TikTok

Abstract

This research analyzes the discursive characteristics of hate messages posted on TikTok Spain against people at risk of social exclusion. Using critical discourse analysis, we analyzed 679 hateful messages generated by 100 videos found about poverty. This method considered the social groups mentioned in those messages, actions attributed to them, the evaluative concepts associated with those actions, and the solutions proposed to eradicate this social problem. We used the qualitative analysis software Atlas.ti to code, categorize, and analyze co-occurrences of derogatory terms. The analysis shows that poverty is linked to migration, laziness, and groups at risk of exclusion. Although insults and degrading terms take on a metaphorical form or are less prevalent, the call to violent action is explicit, openly advocating the extermination of these groups. Underlying these messages is a clear neo-Nazi ideology gaining ground with the advance of the extreme political Right.