About Article

This article explores how Australian print media has reported on the legally contentious activities of far-right actors, using evidence from newspaper articles and court documents. It builds on prior crimin ological research that has examined how media representations contribute to the rise of intersectional prejudice and the normal isation of racist violence. While much existing research on far-right activism in Australia and similar countries with European colonial histories focuses on the victimisation of marginalised and minori tised communities, this article argues that a full understanding of the political normalisation or “mainstreaming” of further right-wing ideals also requires examining broader societal perceptions of far- right actors. This includes both their violent actions and their non- violent actions, and their less overtly political activities. The study employs a critical approach to criminological theory, drawing on Innes’ concept of message crimes, Jewkes’ criteria for crime news values, and Sykes and Matza’s techniques of neutralisation.