Social proximity, discursive opportunity structures, and the diffusion of the culture wars

August 6, 2025

Culture war dynamics have generated political and social polarization in a range of countries. We identify two key factors—social proximity and discursive opportunity structures—that influence the timing of the arrival and the meaning of the term “woke” in France, comparing its usage to that in Britain and Spain. We track “woke” and similar phrases by examining their frequency as well as their contextual meaning, drawing on extensive data from mainstream media outlets that reflect public discourse. Using an abductive approach that matches theoretical insights to empirical observations, we develop a framework that can be applied to understand the spread of culture war terms across liberal democracies.