Transformative Media: A Critical Approach to Alt-right Media Appropriations

Abstract

This paper distinguishes between several key features of transformative alternative left media and regressive alt-right media. In the exploration of alt-right media tactics, we map eight cooptation strategies by the alt-right that we categorise into three forms: (1) ideological discursive appropriation; (2) reversal capture; and (3) commodity cooptation. We contrast these strategies with transformative alt-left media practices rooted in intersectional justice and social movements, showing how offline organising, collective care, and fact-based storytelling protect movements from toxic disinformation. This work is vital to spot and disrupt alt-right appropriation and infiltration, fortify intersectional, truth-driven media, and mobilise authentic grassroots power. We argue for the enduring significance of offline organisation in transformative intersectional alternative media practices, where supporting strong relationships potentiates community building, deep affective labour, and positive social transformation.

Acknowledgement: This article has been previously published in German by Forschungsjournal Soziale Bewegungen in 2025 as „Transformative Medien: Alternative Medien rutschen von links nach rechts”, https://doi.org/10.1515/fjsb-2025-2006. The original English version is here published with permission by Forschungsjournal Soziale Bewegungen.
The Media Action Research Group is supported in part by funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.