You Can’t Post Your Way Out of Fascism (404media.co)

Posted on Feb 5, 2025

🧵 Overview & Context

📰 “You Can’t Post Your Way Out of Fascism” by Jason Koebler is a candid and urgent reflection on the limits of digital resistance in the face of rising authoritarianism in the United States. Published by 404 Media, the piece critiques the widespread belief that posting online can meaningfully disrupt or dismantle fascist systems.

🔍 Key Themes

  • 💬 The Illusion of Online Resistance: The article argues that platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook offer users the feeling of doing something meaningful, while actual power structures remain untouched.

  • 🧠 Mass Psychosocial Manipulation: Social media algorithms promote passivity, outrage, and commodified dissent—channeling rage into engagement metrics instead of direct action.

  • ⚖️ Historical Urgency: With real-world authoritarian moves escalating—like Supreme Court decisions empowering the presidency—Koebler warns that digital venting won’t protect rights or restore democracy.

  • 🤝 Call to Action: The author urges readers to go beyond screens—engaging in mutual aid, organizing, protest, labor solidarity, and tangible political resistance.

⚠️ TL;DR

You can’t “doomscroll” or meme your way to saving democracy. While the internet remains a tool for coordination, it must be part of a broader, offline strategy for resisting fascist encroachment.

📌 “You Can’t Post Your Way Out of Fascism” — Jason Koebler, 404 Media
(Summary generated by ChatGPT, GPT-4-turbo, July 2025)