Former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley recently made a surprising statement during a Republican presidential candidate debate, highlighting a connection between TikTok usage and antisemitism. Haley proposed a ban on TikTok, claiming that for every 30 minutes someone watches the platform, they become 17% more antisemitic and pro-Hamas. This assertion suggests that a TikTok user’s level of antisemitism would double in just 6.5 hours, exemplifying the power of compound interest.
While some immediately pointed out that Haley’s daughter has a popular TikTok account, it is more pertinent to focus on the accuracy of her statement. While she wasn’t entirely accurate, she wasn’t far off either. A study conducted on 1,323 Americans under the age of 30 found that spending half an hour on TikTok each day was associated with a 17% increase in the likelihood of holding antisemitic or anti-Israel views compared to non-users. Although this percentage is higher than what was observed with Instagram or X users, the study does not imply that continued use of TikTok will further strengthen an individual’s antisemitic beliefs.
This discussion surrounding TikTok and antisemitism comes in the wake of a Capitol Hill hearing that shed light on the issue of campus antisemitism. Consequently, the presidents of Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and MIT faced criticism for their unwillingness to take action against students calling for the genocide of Jews.
Now see: Harvard president on Hamas attack: ‘I was focused on action that weekend, not statements’