Platforms of Providence: Algorithmic Media and the Circulation of Christian Nationalism

Christian nationalism has become an influential force in American political and religious life, shaping debates about national identity, culture, and belonging. While scholarship has examined the narratives and rhetoric animating these movements, less attention has been given to the digital environments through which such narratives circulate and acquire social force. Drawing on insights from the sociology of algorithms, this paper examines how algorithmic media platforms participate in the circulation of Christian nationalist discourse in the United States. Social media infrastructures do not simply distribute nationalist ideas; they shape the conditions under which claims of cultural decline, religious marginalization, and civilizational threat become visible and emotionally persuasive. Through podcasts, livestream ministries, and short-form platform media, users encounter frameworks portraying the nation as morally endangered. The paper argues that algorithmic media platforms have become key infrastructures through which Christian nationalist identity circulates and mobilizes.