Thread by @OhadZemet

A @TelAvivUni study, covered by @BBCNews, reported a global rise in #antisemitism. The study notes that social media plays "an exceptionally alarming role" in the rise. I must share my thoughts on how misleading headlines on the ISR-PAL conflict inflame antisemitism... 🧵(1/10)

I've noticed that it is often very difficult for various media outlets to explicitly state that Israelis are victims of violence by Palestinians. Much more often though, we see headlines state it the other way round. 🧵(2/10)

Here are three recent examples:
1) “Israel Strikes Gaza after rocket attack”
Where was the rocket fired from?
Who was its target?
Who fired the rocket?
The @guardian won’t tell you. 🧵 (3/10)

2) “Five killed in latest deadly attack in Israel”
Who were these five victims?
Who carried out the deadly attack?
What was the nature of the attack?
@BBCNews won’t tell you. 🧵 (4/10)

3) “Israeli forces shoot Palestinian who killed two in Tel Aviv bar”
Who were the two murdered?
Again, what was the nature of this attack?
Why is it so hard for @Reuters to state that these were Israeli victims? 🧵 (5/10)

On the other hand, you're very likely to be told when the victims are Palestinians, when Israel reacts to the attack:
“Two Palestinians killed in Israeli West Bank raid”
“Israel strikes Gaza…”
“Israeli forces shoot Palestinian…”
Does this seem like balanced reporting? 🧵 (6/10)

You can easily find other examples. This wording inadvertently adds to shaping a false narrative where 🇮🇱 is portrayed all too often as the only aggressor & Palestinians as the only helpless, passive victims - not reflecting the complex reality of the conflict. 🧵 (7/10)

It contributes to the reinforcement of dangerous tropes, which spread online and on social media, about Israel and Israelis being evil. Does that remind you of anything? 🧵 (8/10)

Not all Jews are Israeli & not all Israelis are Jews.
But 🇮🇱 is the world's only ✡️ state and has the largest Jewish community globally. We can't ignore the similarity between the blood libels Jews suffered for decades & the tropes 🇮🇱 suffers from now on social media. 🧵 (9/10)

Respectable media outlets have to be more aware of this reality. They must appreciate the clear importance that language and wording play when writing headlines that report on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The @TelAvivUni study in @BBCNews👇 END🧵
bbc.co.uk/news/world-mid…