Antisemitism, (Anti-)Zionism and Islamophobia: Conceptual Clarifications, Empirical Evidence and Operational Frameworks on X, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok (2024)

Abstract

In this article, we develop a theoretical and conceptual framework that differentiates religious Judeophobia from modern antisemitism and enables the separation of anti-Jewish hatred from legitimate political critique of Israel. To achieve this, we articulate three operational definitions based on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), the Nexus Task Force (Nexus), and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism (JDA). These definitions allow us to operationalise antisemitism- such as conspiracies about “Jewish power,” collective blame, dual loyalty, denial or trivialisation of the Shoah, denial of the right to exist, and extreme double standards- and to clarify what does not qualify as antisemitism per se (fact- based criticism of Israeli policies, support for Palestinian rights, or non- violent BDS, provided it does not rely on stereotypes). Building on this foundation, we analyse digital antisemitism and its entanglement with (anti-)Zionism and Islamophobia on X, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. We draw on a dataset of 798,475 Spanish-language messages geolocated in Spain (April–August 2024). Methodologically, we combine automated toxicity detection (Perspective API) with thematic classification models targeting five vulnerable groups: antisemitism, antigypsyism, Islamophobia/anti- Arab racism, xenophobia, and LGBTIQ-phobia. The results reveal (i) spikes of “neo- antisemitism” linked to episodes of military escalation in Israel–Gaza, where anti- Zionism acts as a vehicle for classic tropes; (ii) cross- transfer of hostility between Jewish and Muslim communities and overlaps with other forms of racism; and (iii) notable cross- platform differences in conspiracy rhetoric and denialism, with Nazi–Israel analogies and extreme double standards emerging as high- risk markers. Finally, we demonstrate how algorithmic “enragement” logics and the circulation of toxic content transform these platforms- especially X- into environments inclined to intensify hate speech rather than mitigate it. As potential countermeasures to this violence, we suggest working on conceptual literacy, moderation protocols grounded in the IHRA–Nexus–JDA, crisis monitoring, and protective measures for Jewish and Muslim communities, aligned with the frameworks of the United Nations (UN), the Organisation for Security and Co- operation in Europe (OSCE), and the European Union (EU), to address (online) hatred without restricting dissent and legitimate criticism.