Israel, Gaza and when your social media posts hurt more than help
David Oliver, USA TODAY
1 day ago
Every time he goes on social media, Aziz Abu Sarah feels sick to his stomach. The Palestinian man has Jewish friends who've lost family members. Friends taken hostage.

"I worry for them like I worry for my Palestinian friends who are in Gaza now, living under bombardment of air strikes," says the author of "Crossing Boundaries: A Traveler’s Guide to World Peace." "We need to see the nuances."

Social media, however, often renders nuance obsolete.

Misinformation and propaganda about the Israel-Hamas conflict – which has resulted in more than 900 Israelis and upwards of 680 Palestinians dead, just days into a new war – fills social media feeds and shows no signs of slowing. Some posts mention the death toll on only one side. Some ignore the civilians taken hostage. Some fail to mention Israel's occupation of Gaza. Some don't account for why Jewish people around the world grow afraid.

These posts often come from those far away from the conflict, like in the U.S., who feel like they have to say something for the sake of seeming involved. But declaring support for one "side" over the other and listing out-of-context information about Israelis and Palestinians may hurt more than help your cause.

Infographic social media posts trying to detail a topic as fraught, as frustrating, as long-lasting as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will always lack critical details due to social media's bite-size commentary nature. Experts warn you should seek greater context before sharing anything. It's perfectly acceptable – and even preferred – for you to stay quiet if you don't know enough about what you're talking about.

"Not everything is black and white," Abu Sarah says. "And to me, it's most painful when I see people I know, people who I respect, people who I love, who have fallen for these (posts) and feel that they need to serve 'their country, their cause, their people,' whatever, by spreading misinformation. It's devastating to me."

Abu Sarah worries the propaganda and misinformation could result in deadly consequences, for those in the Middle East and elsewhere. "People will read it, get angry and do things."

More on this: Online hate surges after Hamas attacks Israel. Why everyone is blaming social media.


Palestinian citizens inspect the damage to the Al-Sussi Mosque and their homes following Israeli air strikes in the Al-Shati Palestinian refugee camp on Oct. 9, 2023 in Gaza City, Gaza. Almost 500 people have died in Gaza after Israel launched sustained retaliatory air strikes after Saturday's attack by Hamas.
'Abuses are quite evident'
Websites like Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter, speak in soundbites, not dissertations.

"You only have a certain amount of space where you can post your tweet or one photo or two, and it doesn't necessarily lend itself to any kind of nuance, or real, significant conversation," says Shaya Lerner, the director of Israel Affairs at the Anti-Defamation League.

The sites have historically faced difficulty combating antisemitic and Islamophobic posts.

Plus, "we know that algorithms can trend toward feeding people polarizing and extremist content to keep them clicking," says Sarah Parkinson, assistant professor of political science and international studies at Johns Hopkins University. "The lack of moderation makes it easy for individuals and organizations to harass people into silence."