Extremism onlineDespite YouTube Policy Update, Anti-Semitic, White Supremacist Channels Remain

Published 23 August 2019

For years, YouTube has officially prohibited content which promoted or condoned violence or incited hatred against individuals or groups based on core characteristics such as ethnicity, gender and sexual identity, and religion. In June 2019 it updated that policy with specific prohibitions against ideologies like white supremacy, which asserted the superiority of one group in order to justify discriminating against or persecuting other groups. An analysis by ADL’s Center on Extremism found that a significant number of channels on YouTube’s platform continue to disseminate anti-Semitic and white supremacist content despite the company’s June 2019 crackdown on hate speech.

An analysis by ADL’s Center on Extremism found that a significant number of channels on YouTube’s platform continue to disseminate anti-Semitic and white supremacist content despite the company’s June 2019 crackdown on hate speech.

For years, YouTube has officially prohibited content which promoted or condoned violence or incited hatred against individuals or groups based on core characteristics such as ethnicity, gender and sexual identity, and religion. In June 2019 it updated that policy with specific prohibitions against ideologies like white supremacy, which asserted the superiority of one group in order to justify discriminating against or persecuting other groups. It also added that it prohibited content which denied violent events like the Holocaust or certain mass shootings. ADL called the update “an important step forward,” adding, “This move alone is insufficient and must be followed by many more changes from YouTube and other tech companies to adequately counter the scourge of online hate and extremism.”

Following the June 2019 announcement, it appeared that YouTube was taking steps to remove offending content from its service, and several channels that were noteworthy vectors for the dissemination of anti-Semitism appeared to have been shut down. However, subsequent analysis from ADL’s Center on Extremism (COE) found that significant anti-Semitic and white supremacist content continues to be accessible on YouTube even after the policy update. What follows is a sampling of channels that disseminate this content.

(Note: All page views are accurate as of 22 July 2019)

Anti-Semitic Channels
The following five anti-Semitic channels promulgate a variety of allegations and tropes which have been used for generations to stoke fear and hatred of Jews. Some of them are overtly Christian, including claims that Jews are aligned with the Antichrist, that they are a blasphemous and evil “synagogue of Satan,” or that they seek to undermine Christian society.