Changes in the media landscape. Up to the 1990s, mainstream media in Western democracies were dominated by intellectuals, who are typically against racism and fascism. This gradually changed as media became more commercialized and sensationalist, a change that rapidly accelerated with the advent of social media, which is completely flooded by hate speech.

Economic reasons are often proposed, but this explanation falls flat considering the lack of a significant economic downturn since the 1990s, and the fact that we have seen fascists massively gaining popularity even in societies that are among the most prosperous in human history. This is especially obvious in Germany, where in East Germany (where the fascist strongholds are) the economic situation has in fact dramatically improved since the 90s.

Wealth and power.

Unscrupulous rich people benefit from the far right, so it is to their advantage to amplify it in media and technology.

There is real and legitimate discontent and disillusionment with the political mainstream, and they're steering those people towards the far right by feeding the public lies that are plausible on the surface and provide an easy target for blame.
They're supported by opportunic charlatans who can get rich by being the mouthpiece.

Billionaires.

Economic despair.

We all know something is deeply wrong with the world, but it's easier to see and blame brown people than to see all the ways that we are being squeezed by the Epstein class.

In a US context, but perhaps the dynamic is the same around the world, is that Republicans blame immigrants and the Democrats, defenders of the status quo, blame nobody.

This is a serious electoral handicap, when your side is prevented from effective world building, when you are not allowed to identify enemies.

Billionaire money. Oligarch money.

It's mainly that they graduated from reactive backlashes. They are seriously organized now, and are taking advantage of the inability of incumbent parties to fix the worsening everything. The far left could be doing that too, but they're not anywhere near as organized.

Predominantly a media which is on the right, and politicians who blame migrants for everything.

Occupy Wallstreet.

People like to joke that it did nothing, but it terrified the corporate masters of the world. They have been trying to teach us uppity poors a lesson ever since.

Billionaires -> full control of MSM, social media, algorithms, politicians -> fueling right wing everything to increase the wealth gap / avoid taxes / avoid control by the masses

What's the old the saying? The love of money is the root of all evil. Nice people aren't billionaires nor do they want power.

There was an Australian man on ITV or BBC's morning show about a year or so ago. He was a very good speaker, but I've no idea who he was. He reckoned (I'm going by memory) it started when the left pushed for more left leaning politics - beginning after the US started a domino effect in the middle East, and caused a surge of immigration.

That coupled with people having their own platforms with the likes of facebook, instagram, twitter etc.

Initially many countries had sat in the middle and were complacent, then there was that surge, with other things that angered the far right and voices started appearing in printed media and online.

I've probably made a balls of what exactly he claimed was the start of it, but he reckoned it was a sleeping giant anyway.

He had been researching it since the 80's iirc.

I watched it as I was getting ready for work and having breakfast. I wouldn't normally watch TV, so wasn't paying great attention to it, it was only a few days later, maybe a week that I was retrospectively going over what he was saying and thought he made good points. if anyone knows the guy I'm talking about, would be great if you could put me out of my misery and name him. I've searched a few times without success. I don't even know if I could say what he looked like, older with thinning grey hair I think..

Jordan Peterson wrote a rather interesting essay earlier this year about the situation in the UK:

https://www.jordanbpeterson.com/blog/theyre-not-rape-gangs/

Disindustrialisation, reduction of purchasing power imo