Inside the everyday Facebook networks where far-right ideas grow

The Guardian spent a year studying an online community trading in anti-immigration sentiment and misinformation. Experts say such spaces can play a role in radicalisation

• Far-right Facebook groups are engine of radicalisation in UK, data investigation suggests

Far-right ideas are gaining ground. They are thriving in online worlds which are not easily visible to large swathes of the public but which spread misinformation that has real-world consequences.

Take last year. In the summer of 2024, riots broke out across parts of the UK, fuelled by misinformation that spread on social media.