Year-Long Study Finds Platform X a Major Hub for Antisemitic Content and Ineffective Moderation

For the annual study conducted by the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA), the X platform is recognized as the “leading platform” for antisemitic posts. The team of researchers collected data over more than a year to assess the scale of the problem and the effectiveness of moderation mechanisms.

Results show that antisemitism on X is not only widespread, but that community notes intended for moderation do not fulfill their role: just a little over 1% of the most popular antisemitic posts were flagged by community fact-checkers.

«The truth is that antisemitism was present on X long before the rebranding (from Twitter). This has always been a problem.»

Key findings of the study

High-audience users who publish antisemitic content and whom researchers labeled as “antisemitic influencers” continue to leave a significant footprint on the platform and reach millions of users.

Some of the most popular antisemitic influencers even pay for verification on X and have the ability to sell subscriptions, enabling them to monetize hatred.

Using OpenAI’s GPT-4o model, the study identified more than 679,000 posts with antisemitic remarks from February 1, 2024, to January 31, 2025. Experts personally reviewed 5,000 posts and recorded the model’s high accuracy.

59% of these posts contained conspiracy theories about Jewish communities – for example, control over governments or attributing general dishonorable intents to Jews, or Holocaust denial. The remaining 41% consisted of antisemitic imagery, demeaning people, and attacks on their reputation.

Platform policies and impact on content

X’s policies ban belittling people based on race or ethnic origin, nationality, caste, religion, age, disability, and other characteristics, as well as calls to violence and dehumanization of groups. Denial of mass atrocities, including the Holocaust, is also prohibited.

If a post violates these rules, the platform may reduce its reach or require removal before republishing.

At the same time, Musk allowed some conspiracy theorists and antisemitic publishers to return to the platform under the banner of free speech. For example, Nick Fuentes’s account, which denied the Holocaust, was reinstated after a ban in 2023.

«It’s better for any antisemitic claim to be openly stated and debunked than to slowly grow in the dark.»

The new annual study also shows that content restrictions on X do not have a significant impact on the volume of antisemitic content. In total, more than 679,000 such posts were identified, which were viewed a total of 193 million times.

The platform did not provide a comment in response to requests for comment about the study.

In January 2024, after criticism for republishing antisemitic conspiracy theories, Musk visited Nazi concentration camps in Europe and met with right-wing podcaster Ben Shapiro. Explaining the platform’s stance on speech, he said that X supports “free expression” and that users can correct misinformation.

«We have mobilized maximum resources and attention to community notes so that, in the event of spreading misinformation, such as Holocaust denial, it is corrected immediately. And you cannot get rid of such a label – it seems to stick to you.»

However, the study notes that community notes do not have the expected impact: they appear on only a little over 1% of the most viewed antisemitic posts, and even in those cases their impact is often noticeably delayed – on average by 22% of the post’s viewing duration.

The study also notes that X took action or forced the post’s author to take measures in only 36 of the 300 most popular antisemitic posts, limiting reach or removing content.

«Antisemitic conspiratorial theories and hatred that were once considered extreme are now fully normalized – they thrive in plain sight and are amplified by X’s own policies not being enforced.»

The ten largest antisemitic influencers accounted for about a third of all recorded posts. One of them has nearly two million followers; the others – hundreds of thousands.

Six of the ten influencers were “verified” at the time of the study, i.e., had the blue check and paid for the X Premium subscription, boosting their reach. Some of them also monetized by charging for subscriptions, providing exclusive content.

CCDH director Ahmed stressed that after the platform was acquired in 2022, Musk had urged not to turn X into a space without consequences. “I fear that for Jews, Musk did just that… He turned X into a hellish vision, and those are his own words,” Ahmed noted.

«X did not sue us for defamation. They sued us for the very act of conducting the study.»

To sum up, the study emphasizes: while the platform takes certain measures, their impact remains limited, and the scale of antisemitic posts continues to be significant. This underscores the need to strengthen moderation and the platform’s transparency regarding content that fuels hatred.