{"id":194782,"date":"2023-01-27T07:15:24","date_gmt":"2023-01-27T12:15:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=194782"},"modified":"2023-01-26T10:42:49","modified_gmt":"2023-01-26T15:42:49","slug":"combating-antisemitism-today-holocaust-education-in-the-era-of-twitter-and-tiktok-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2023\/01\/combating-antisemitism-today-holocaust-education-in-the-era-of-twitter-and-tiktok-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Combating Antisemitism Today: Holocaust Education in the Era of Twitter and TikTok"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the era of social media, antisemitism and Holocaust denial are no longer hidden in the margins, spewed by fringe hate groups. From Ye \u2013 formerly known as\u00a0Kanye West<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 and NBA player\u00a0Kyrie Irving<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0members of Congress<\/a>\u00a0on both sides of the aisle, well-recognized personalities have echoed antisemitic ideas, often online.<\/p>\n

Beyond high-profile figures<\/a>, there are clear signs that antisemitism is becoming more mainstream. In 2021, using the most recent data available, the Anti-Defamation League reported that antisemitic incidents in the U.S. reached\u00a0an all-time high<\/a>. Eighty-five percent of Americans believe at least one anti-Jewish trope, according to\u00a0another ADL survey<\/a>, and about 20% believe six or more tropes \u2013 a sharp increase from just four years before. In addition, Jewish college students increasingly report\u00a0feeling unsafe<\/a>,\u00a0ostracized or harassed<\/a>\u00a0on campus.<\/p>\n

All of this is layered on top of a widespread\u00a0lack of knowledge about the Holocaust<\/a>. As\u00a0International Holocaust Remembrance Day<\/a>\u00a0approaches \u2013 Jan. 27, the day Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated \u2013 it is important to rethink how educators\u00a0like me<\/a>\u00a0design lessons on antisemitism and the Holocaust.<\/p>\n

Rather than teaching the Holocaust as an isolated event, educators must grapple with how it connects to antisemitism past and present. That means adapting to how people learn and live today: online.<\/p>\n

Toxic information landscape<\/strong><\/p>\n

The online ecosystem where today\u2019s antisemitism flourishes is a\u00a0Wild West of information<\/a>\u00a0and misinformation that is largely unmonitored, distributed in an instant, and posted by anyone. Social media posts and news feeds are frequently\u00a0filtered by algorithms<\/a>\u00a0that narrow the content users receive, reinforcing already held beliefs.<\/p>\n

Mainstream platforms\u00a0like TikTok<\/a>, with soaring growth among young people, can be\u00a0used to promote antisemitism<\/a>, as can less well-known apps\u00a0such as Telegram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

According to a 2022 report by the United Nations<\/a>, 17% of public TikTok content related to the Holocaust either denied or distorted it. The same was true of almost 1 in 5 Holocaust-related Twitter posts and 49% of Holocaust content on Telegram.<\/p>\n

An emerging danger is artificial intelligence technology. New AI resources offer potential teaching tools \u2013 but also the menace of easily spread and unmonitored misinformation. For example,\u00a0character AI<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Historical Figures Chat<\/a>\u00a0allow you to \u201cchat\u201d with a historical figure<\/a>, including those associated with the Holocaust: from victims like Holocaust diarist\u00a0Anne Frank<\/a>\u00a0to perpetrators such as\u00a0Joseph Goebbels<\/a>, Adolf Hitler\u2019s minister of propaganda.<\/p>\n

These sites come with warnings that characters\u2019 responses could be made up and that users should check for historical accuracy, but it is easy to be misled by inaccurate answers.<\/p>\n

Another potential AI hazard is deepfake videos. Media experts are warning about the potential for destabilizing \u201ctruth decay<\/a>,\u201d the inability to know what is real and what is fake, as the amount of synthetic content multiplies. Holocaust scholars are preparing to combat how historical sources and educational materials\u00a0may be manipulated by deepfakes<\/a>. There is particular concern that\u00a0deepfakes will be used to manipulate or undercut survivors\u2019 testimony<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Media literacy<\/strong><\/p>\n

Much of my scholarship tackles contemporary approaches to teaching the Holocaust \u2013 for example, the need\u00a0to rethink education<\/a>\u00a0as the number of Holocaust survivors who are still able to tell their stories rapidly declines. Addressing today\u2019s toxic information landscape presents another fundamental challenge that requires innovative solutions.<\/p>\n

As a first step, educators can promote media literacy, the knowledge and skills needed to navigate and critique online information, and teach learners to approach sources with both healthy criticism and an open mind. Key strategies\u00a0for K-12 students<\/a>\u00a0include training them to consider who is behind particular information and what evidence is provided and to investigate the creators of an unknown online source by seeing what trusted websites say about its information or authors.<\/p>\n

Media literacy<\/a>\u00a0also entails identifying a source\u2019s author, genre, purpose and point of view, as well as reflecting on one\u2019s own point of view. Finally, it is important to trace claims, quotes and media\u00a0back to the original source or context<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Applying these skills to a Holocaust unit<\/a>\u00a0might focus on recognizing the implicit\u00a0stereotypes<\/a>\u00a0and misinformation online sources often rely on and paying attention to who these sources are and what their purpose is. Lessons can also analyze how social media\u00a0enables<\/a>\u00a0Holocaust denial<\/a>\u00a0and investigate common formats for online antisemitism, such as\u00a0deepfake videos<\/a>, memes and troll attacks.<\/p>\n

Learning in the digital age<\/strong><\/p>\n

Holocaust educators<\/a>\u00a0can also embrace new technologies, rather than just lament their pitfalls. For example, long after survivors die, people will be able to \u201cconverse\u201d with them in museums and classrooms using\u00a0specially recorded testimonies<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0natural language technology<\/a>. Such programs can match a visitor\u2019s questions with relevant parts of prerecorded interviews, responding almost as though they were talking to the visitor in person.<\/p>\n

There are also immersive virtual reality programs that combine recorded survivor testimonies with VR visits to concentration camps, survivors\u2019 hometowns and other historical sites. One such exhibition is \u201cThe Journey Back<\/a>\u201d at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center. Not only can VR experiences transport viewers to such sites in a more realistic way than traditional lessons, but they also allow learners to partially decide how to interact with the virtual environment. In interviews for my current research, viewers report Holocaust VR experiences make them feel emotionally engaged with a survivor.<\/p>\n

Society’s ‘family tree’<\/strong><\/p>\n

People often learn about themselves by exploring their family trees, examining heirlooms passed down from ancestors and telling stories around the dinner table \u2013 helping people make sense of who they are.<\/p>\n

The same principle applies to understanding society.\u00a0Studying the past<\/a>\u00a0provides a road map of how people and prior events shaped today\u2019s conditions, including antisemitism. It is important for young people to understand that\u00a0antisemitism\u2019s horrific history<\/a>\u00a0did not originate with the Holocaust.\u00a0Lessons<\/a>\u00a0that lead students to reflect on how indifference and collaboration fueled hate \u2013 or how everyday people helped stop it \u2013 can inspire them to speak up and act in response to rising antisemitism.<\/p>\n

Holocaust education is not a neutral endeavor. As survivor and scholar\u00a0Elie Wiesel<\/a>\u00a0said\u00a0when accepting<\/a>\u00a0his 1986 Nobel Peace Prize, \u201cWe must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Originally published in The Conversation.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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