The Alt-Right Playbook: Control the Conversation
Why Hacker News recommends it
HN recommends the series for explaining the tactics and mentality of bad-faith online arguments.
What it is
Innuendo Studios' video from the Alt-Right Playbook series on how bad-faith actors control the conversation through debate tactics and moving goalposts.
Recommended by 4 HN commenters across 3 different months, 2017 to 2025.
What Hacker News said
Strong rec pdkl95 · 2017-11 · on “Google’s fired engineer: James Damore’s claim against search giant revealed”
The problem is you're implicitly assuming this (and other recent "culture war topics" is actually about reasoning and legitimate attempt at debate. It isn't. This is about controlling narratives and reframing offensive goals so they become a legitimate political opinion. Most of these calls for a "debate" are not trying to actually debate anything. They are trying to make enough confusing noise and repeat their talking points as often as possible. For a much better explanation of how this works - and why it's a trap which educated, well meaning, politically-interested people seem to be particularly vulnerable - see this short video essay: [this video]
Strong rec che_shirecat · 2018-08 · on “Microsoft threatens to stop hosting Gab unless posts are removed”
The alt-right playbook ( [this video] ) is a great summary of common experiences with this sort of cancer online. It's next to impossible to engage with these people for rational debate, when all they care about is spreading their hatred and ignorance through the virality of the internet, rendering pointless any civil discussion by arguing in bad faith.
Strong rec LimaBearz · 2021-01 · on “Amazon, Apple and Google Cut Off Parler”
Before this gets too far I’d just like to point out that anyone arguing this is an issue of free speech or “first they came for x, who’s next” is not arguing in good faith.. I’ve noticed a pattern of moving the goal post. The problem here is an insurrection and the loss of 5 American lives. Arguing there is not advantageous, easy, or particularly strong so the goal post moves to free speech leaving what happened at the capitol off the table. I really enjoy the series on YouTube “the alt right playbook”. [this video] This one is applicable here
Strong rec vladTheInhaler · 2021-01 · on “YouTube bans Steve Bannon's podcast channel”
A channel called Innuendo Studios chronicles this tactic and many others in a series called The Alt-Right Playbook [1]. I found it enormously helpful to understand the mentality and tactics of a group that kind of doesn't make any sense. [1] The Alt-Right Playbook: Control the Conversation - [this video]
Cites spiralx · 2022-08 · on “Alex Jones must pay $50m in punitive damages for Sandy Hook hoax claim”
Why do libel and slander laws exist when someone can just debunk any lies told about them? And then the next lie, and the next one, and so on... [this video]
Cites fallingfrog · 2025-02 · on “The young, inexperienced engineers aiding DOGE”
Ah, I see. You ignore my question and answer as if I had asked a different one more to your liking. [this video] I suppose this could be considered a type of gish galloping too. [LINK]
Cites phatskat · 2025-07 · on “Linda Yaccarino is leaving X”
> Agenda setting power > platform power The Alt-Right Playbook feels like a bummer version of XKCD for these discussions: [Control the Conversation]( [this video] )