American Editors-in-Chief, your silence is fueling antisemitism

Just a few years ago, when Jewish cemeteries across the United States were spray-painted with swastikas and thus desecrated, this was news. In 2024, this may still be news, but not on a national level – though antisemitism rates have skyrocketed since the October 7 massacre took place. Incidents where no Jews are killed won’t get the attention of the national American media for one simple reason: these have just become the new norm.

After Donald Trump was elected president in 2017, the American media covered every tiny antisemitic incident at the beginning of its newscast, as if it were the most pressing issue. It was easy for mainstream media to blame that new Republican president, who wasn’t politically correct, for the spreading of antisemitism. But since antisemitism rates have just become increasingly more dramatic, only local and Jewish media outlets typically cover it, whereas mainstream national US media currently rarely provides coverage of antisemitic incidents.

Notably, the ADL’s annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents revealed a significant surge in antisemitic activities in the US during 2017 – 1,986 – marking a 57% increase from the previous year. This uptick represented the most considerable single-year rise since the ADL began monitoring such incidents in 1979, and the total number of incidents ranks as the second highest ever recorded.

In 2022, the ADL reported 3,697 antisemitic incidents in the US, marking a 36% increase from 2021’s 2,717 incidents and setting a new record since the organization began its tracking. At the beginning of 2024, the ADL reported a significant surge in antisemitic incidents, with 3,283 occurrences between October 7 and January 7, marking a 361% increase from the 712 incidents reported during the same period the previous year.

A simple search via Google Trends shows a substantial increase in the use of the word “antisemitism” in the US since being monitored in 2004. Google Trends displays the data from these searches on a scale from one to 100. Numbers represent search interest relative to the highest point on the chart for the given region and time. A value of 100 is the peak popularity for the term. A value of 50 means that the term is half as popular. A score of 0 means there was not enough data for this term.

During 2004 and 2005, the word “antisemitism” was at four to five points (out of 100), but in November 2023, it rose from 15 points in the previous month to 100 points, displaying the highest ever since Google began monitoring search words.

The word “Jews” also reached an all-time high in October 2023 with 100 points, while in August 2022, it was only at 22 points.

Just a few days ago, a man was arrested for arson after setting fire to a local rabbi’s Las Olas Chabad Jewish Center in Fort Lauderdale. On the same day, a fight between pro-Palestinian protesters and an Israel supporter took place outside the David Posnack Jewish Community Center in Davie, Florida, amid dueling rallies and a gala event. A Jewish man was attacked. These two stories barely received attention in the national American media.

As I said, this is the new norm: Jews will be under attack, and it isn’t news anymore unless, god forbid, someone is killed.

How absurd is it that in a time where American Jews are most vulnerable, its mainstream media outlets focus more on the “hunger” of Palestinians and less on their own citizens being assaulted just because of their identity, religion or beliefs? Why aren’t the news broadcasts opening with breaking news on the daily targeting of Jews? Swastikas on tombstones of Jews have become something that happens every day, antisemitic fliers have become something Jews are expecting to see outside their homes, and violence towards visually-looking Jewish Americans is more popular than it’s been in decades.

Media indifference fuels further Jew-hatred

By failing to cover such clear acts of racism, US mainstream media, in its silence and indifference, is normalizing the targeting of Jews simply because they are Jewish.

In light of this and of these disturbing trends, we must confront the unsettling normalization of antisemitism within the American landscape. The alarming escalation in hate crimes against Jews cannot be relegated to the back pages of our national consciousness or dismissed as isolated incidents. Mainstream media outlets in the US, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, and Fox News, hold a critical responsibility in shaping public awareness and discourse.

This column is a call to these esteemed institutions to recalibrate their coverage and place a renewed emphasis on the growing threat of antisemitism. By ensuring that these incidents receive the national attention they deserve, the media can play a central role in mobilizing society against hate and fostering an environment of tolerance and understanding.

To the editors-in-chief of American news outlets: As leaders in journalism, you are uniquely positioned to influence the national narrative. The current approach to covering antisemitism, characterized by sporadic attention and underreporting, must be revisited. Please reflect on your platforms’ potential to effect change and consider the impact of your editorial choices. Let us not wait for tragedy to unite us in action. By amplifying the voices of those affected by antisemitism and prioritizing these stories, we can challenge the complacency that has allowed such hatred to flourish. Together, through vigilant and comprehensive reporting, we can reaffirm our collective commitment to justice, equality, and the sanctity of every human life.