Online antisemitism at record levels

A comprehensive report from the Online Hate Prevention Institute (OHPI) has found that antisemitism has reached record or near-record levels on social media, with four platforms now recording higher levels than in the months immediately following October 7, 2023.

The report examines changes to the prevalence and nature of antisemitism across 10 social platforms from the year before October 7 through to the second anniversary of the attack. It is based on analysis of almost 11,000 items of online antisemitic content, with more than 750 antisemitic items gathered from each of Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, X (Twitter), Reddit, LinkedIn, Gab, Telegram and BitChute.

The findings reveal a sharp rise in antisemitism in the months after October 7, followed by a decline later in 2024, before a renewed rise during 2025. On three of the 10 platforms, antisemitism is currently at an all-time high.

The report documents the top 10 categories of antisemitic narratives. Traditional antisemitism, such as blood libel and claims that Jews killed Jesus, accounts for 36.2 per cent of content. Promotion of world Jewish conspiracy theories accounts for 26.5 per cent, while describing Israel or Israelis using antisemitic words or imagery makes up 25.1 per cent.

Other major categories include promoting the idea that Jews control government or other societal institutions (16.5 per cent), dehumanising Jews (10.3 per cent) and denying Jewish people self-determination by claiming Israel’s existence is racist (9.1 per cent).

The report also identified emerging narratives including October 7 denial, glorification of the massacre and Hamas, denial of antisemitism, racist anti-Zionism, Nazi glorification and Iranian influence.

The analysis shows that before October 7, Holocaust denial and distortion was common across mainstream platforms, while conspiracy theories of Jewish world control were prevalent across all platforms. After October 7, traditional antisemitism dominated on every platform. By September this year traditional antisemitism remained the most frequent form of antisemitism on most platforms.

On Facebook, LinkedIn and Reddit, the most common form of antisemitism was using traditional antisemitic narratives in reference to Zionists, Israelis or Israel.

The report concludes with guidance on addressing antisemitism and emphasises that antisemitic content targeting Zionist Jews must be assessed from the perspective of a Zionist Jew, and that harassing someone after identifying them as Jewish is antisemitic even if the harassment is framed as something else.

Read the report at: ohpi.org.au/oct7-2-years-on