Disagreement, conflictual interactions and hostile discourse are common on social networking platforms, especially when the topic under discussion is contentious or polarising. This presentation examines this aspect of social media in the context of discourse about religious faith and exit in YouTube comments sections, which often leads to antagonistic exchanges.
With the prevalence of personalised, creator-controlled online platforms, there is an unprecedented capability to produce and spread opinions and information, both in support of and to challenge dominant epistemologies. Social media platforms are increasingly seen as credible sources of information, and constitute an important third space for learning and meaning-making. Ordinary users are creating and distributing religious and anti-religious content which 'challenges the power of traditional organisations to produce, distribute and regulate mass media' (Teusner 2010, p.41). For example, religious groups form Facebook pages to cater for identity needs not addressed in their own parishes, such as LGBTQIA+ identified Christians. There is a corresponding rise in atheist and anti-theist content online, including critical commentary, discussion forums and personal deconversion (religious exit) narratives, as well as online debates between ideologically opposed groups.
Data are taken from the comment sections of deconversion videos created by former fundamentalist evangelical Christians in the USA. Deconversion narratives are personal stories of leaving a faith-based belief system and identifying as a non-believer or atheist. The USA is politically and technologically powerful globally, and, despite being ostensibly secular, religious adherence of the population and religious influence in politics are ubiquitous. Users who post comments are motivated to engage with the video creator's story, in support and in opposition, and to interact with other users. Commenters co-construct meaning in these interactions, evaluate each others' stances, and often cite and share other online content as authoritative sources.
This research takes a qualitative, multi-layered, sociolinguistic approach to the data in order to better understand the way commenters use social media to situate themselves ideologically, reinforce their epistemological stance, and engage in antagonistic interactions.
