2019-05-16

 A quantitative report from I’lam, the Arab Center for Media Freedoms, Research and Development, reveals that Facebook is the most popular platform for racism and incitement against Palestinians, followed by Twitter, and then more traditional news platforms Yediot Ahronot and Channel 10.

The report, issued in January, is the result of a year and a half of monitoring by I’lam. Researchers tracked traditional written, visual and audio media, along with Twitter and Facebook from July 2017 to December 2018, documenting 868 articles or stories with incendiary or racist content against Palestinians.

Facebook accounted for nearly a quarter of the reports at 24 percent. Twitter accounted for 12 percent, while Yediot Ahronot and Channel 10 each accounted for 10 percent of incidences.

The report showed that the targets of racist or incendiary content are changing with local political and security developments. But over the monitoring period, the Palestinian Authority was the most targeted segment of Palestinian society. They were attacked in 19 percent of incidences, followed by PA President Mahmoud Abbas at 18 percent and Palestinian society as a whole at 16 percent.

The precise nature of the incitement varied as well. Some instances argued for collective punishment or legitimised the use of force against Palestinians, others demonise or stereotype them. Still others delegitimise Palestinians and their leaders or employ racist rhetoric and portray Israel as a victim.

The most common form of incitement was demonisation at 77 percent and generalisation and delegitimisation at 77 percent, followed by racist speech at 58 percent.

Importantly, flagged articles usually contain more than one instance of incitement, meaning Palestinian political leaders are routinely demonised and thus delegitimised in the media.