  Video streaming platforms such as Youtube, Twitch, and DLive allow users to
live-stream video content for viewers who can optionally express their
appreciation through monetary donations. DLive is one of the smaller and
lesser-known streaming platforms, and historically has had fewer content
moderation practices. It has thus become a popular place for violent extremists
and other clandestine groups to earn money and propagandize. What is the
financial structure of the DLive streaming ecosystem and how much money is
changing hands? In the past it has been difficult to understand how far-right
extremists fundraise via podcasts and video streams because of the secretive
nature of the activity and because of the difficulty of getting data from
social media platforms. This paper describes a novel experiment to collect and
analyze data from DLive's publicly available ledgers of transactions in order
to understand the financial structure of the clandestine, extreme far-right
video streaming community. The main findings of this paper are, first, that the
majority of donors are using micropayments in varying frequencies, but a small
handful of donors spend large amounts of money to finance their favorite
streamers. Next, the timing of donations to high-profile far-right streamers
follows a fairly predictable pattern that is closely tied to a broadcast
schedule. Finally, the far-right video streaming financial landscape is divided
into separate cliques which exhibit very little crossover in terms of sizable
donations. This work will be important to technology companies, policymakers,
and researchers who are trying to understand how niche social media services,
including video platforms, are being exploited by extremists to propagandize
and fundraise.
