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Under the direction of Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr, an international team in the social and media sciences is researching how misogynistic content, especially AI-generated images and videos, influence teenagers and young adults via social media such as TikTok, Instagram or X.
Between dance videos, selfies and seemingly funny photos, images that convey more than just entertainment are increasingly appearing in young people's social media posts: subtle devaluations, stereotypical images of women and visually packaged messages of hate. A new research project at the University of Siegen is focusing on precisely where everyday digital culture takes place - on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and X. Under the direction of Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr, the EU-funded FEMVision project is investigating how AI-generated images and videos on the internet spread misogynistic images and what effect they have on young people.
"Today, digital misogyny is subtle and visual, for example in memes, selfies or videos that seem harmless but convey sexist, racist or anti-Semitic ideas," explains Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr from the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Siegen. As project manager, she contributes her expertise as a qualitative methods expert and visual data analyst. "With FEMVision, we are analyzing the mechanisms of action of such content and possible social approaches in educational work and in the context of schools and institutions."
The research is based on sociological, qualitative case studies and the analysis of large data sets from the USA and Europe. Previous studies, including the EU joint project "Extreme Identities", have already shown that right-wing extremist platforms appeal to young people with popular, subtly racist videos and images. These include negative hostile images of feminist women and queer people as well as positive images of white women in traditional roles and as right-wing leaders. US Telegram channels, for example, post selfies of female politicians such as Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, sometimes with a machine gun, sometimes in a ball gown, combined with hate messages towards members of the Democratic Party. German-language platforms of the far-right Identitarian movement show similar patterns: right-wing leaders present themselves as "hip" or traditional in dirndls and lederhosen, while negative images of well-known left-wing or green politicians, minorities and queer people are disseminated. "This self-valorization of the 'right' women and men and the devaluation of liberal, multicultural or queer groups serve to mobilize right-wing extremist emotions," explains Nicole Milman-Dörr.
In the new project, the focus is no longer on right-wing extremist or religious platforms, but rather the researchers are looking specifically at the common digital spaces in which young people aged 18 to 30 use in their everyday lives. These include algorithmic feeds (streams of posts), semi-private conversations and gaming platforms. "This is an under-researched but socially relevant area in which gender-specific hostility is normalized," says Nicole Milman-Dörr.
Memes, as funny-looking photos and videos, play a central role: they can convey overlapping messages such as racism, anti-gender, anti-Islam and anti-Semitism. For example, European politicians such as Angela Merkel or Emmanuel Macron are caricatured in memes to portray multicultural, queer or liberal politicians as a threat to "authentic", Christian, white families and conservative societies. At the same time, conservative family models with many children are presented as the ideal.
With the FEMVision project, the University of Siegen is positioning itself as a central player in digital public research. Nicole Milman-Dörr: "We are also concerned with strengthening media skills, prevention strategies and the ability of young people to reflect critically."
FEMVision brings together universities and civil society partners from several EU countries, including the renowned Italian publishing house Feltrinelli, the multimedia platform "We are Europe" and the Amadeu Antonio Foundation. In addition to the University of Siegen, the universities of Copenhagen, Urbino, Uppsala, Ljubljana and Tallinn are also involved. The project is funded by the EU with 375,000 euros and will run for four years.
Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr
Sozialwissenschaftliches Seminar
E-Mail: Nicole.MilmanDoerr@uni-siegen.de
Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr heads the FEMVision project.
Copyright: Universität Siegen
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Prof. Dr. Nicole Milman-Dörr heads the FEMVision project.
Copyright: Universität Siegen
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