Jade Hutchinson

Mr Jade Hutchinson is a Cotutelle Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University (Australia) and Research Centre for Media and Journalism Studies at the University of Groningen (The Netherlands). Jade’s research is focused on countering violent extremism emerging from digital media ecosystems, examining the confluence between extremism, ideological and conspiratorial belief, social media platforms, exploring sociotechnical trends and conditions that contribute to exposure to extremist content, and to provide actionable insights that inform policy and intervention strategies. 

Jade’s approach relies on sociotechnical expertise and empirically validated ecological frameworks, combining quantitative and qualitative methodologies to gather data and devise practices to counter undemocratic and personally unsustainable beliefs and behaviours emerging from digital media ecosystems. At ICCT, Jade’s research will focus on the intersection of digital media technology and online radicalisation in young vulnerable populations. His research will explore the issue of online youth radicalisation, how disenfranchised male adolescents and children may be influenced by online extremist communities that are propagating misogynistic and anti-institutional views, the interaction between “online” and “offline” spaces, what do we mean by the “normalisation” of online ideologies, and considering the Dutch context, how can we identify critical gaps in understanding and countering this issue.

Jade has led and co-led funded research projects investigating Australian and Canadian far-right online (violent) extremism in the context of an ‘online extremist ecosystem’, sociotechnological influences in extreme subcultural communities such as Involuntary Celibates (Incels), the influences of particular social media software features such as Facebook’s ‘Reactions’, and analysing counter violent extremism practices used against online violent extremist communities. In addition to his teaching position at Macquarie University (Australia), Jade is currently a Visiting Fellow at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism and a Member of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering’s as an Emerging Leader in the Digital Futures Forum. Jade maintains and continues to develop international memberships and partnerships between academic, governmental, and private organisations – in Australia, Canada, United States, and Europe – with the aim to produce plausible, multi-stakeholder solutions to issues related to digital media technologies and violent extremism.