TikTok is facing mounting criticism after a JC investigation revealed a troubling increase in antisemitic content linked to the platform’s new image comment feature.
The update, which allows users to post pictures as comments on videos, has been used as a tool for spreading hate-filled memes and Nazi graphics targeting the Jewish community.
The images, often styled using gamified formats to appeal to younger audiences, are part of a broader trend that could serve as a gateway to more extreme content.
Alarmingly, some of the comments appear to originate from organised groups that are operating under the radar, deliberately targeting young Britons in an effort to normalise antisemitism and introduce far-right ideologies through seemingly harmless online interactions, experts have warned.
Leading antisemitism organisations have urged the social media giant to put the initiative under review and implement greater measures to protect users, labeling it a “gimmick that makes it easy to abuse others”.
After TikTok was shown 50 examples of antisemitic image comments, the platform claimed it had removed all the content, though much of it remained online.
Images depicting Adolf Hitler in the popular video game Minecraft are widespread.
The JC has seen dozens of examples featuring cartoon versions of a naked Hitler with a swastika on his chest and leading others into battle. These frequently appear in videos that reference Israel or Judaism.
A meme shared by multiple accounts shows a picture of Adolf Hitler and Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels outside Auschwitz, alongside the number 271,000 – a nod to the false claim espoused by Holocaust deniers and neo-Nazis that that this was the “actual” Jewish death toll in the Second World War, rather than the true figure, six million.
A separate comment depicts a Nazi soldier brutally dragging a Jewish boy by his peyot (sidelocks), with the user adding “Is this antisemitism to you”.
Another displays an image saying “F*** all Jews” on a piece of work which appears to be from a school, citing the rules. Other images and phrases shared are even more extreme and offensive.
Danny Stone, the chief executive of the Antisemitism Policy Trust, has insisted more must be done to put an end to the “same old story of racist abuse online.
“There is no excuse whatsoever for TikTok to be introducing gimmicks that make it easy to abuse others,” he said.
“It is yet another example of a company thinking about product and profit first and people later.
“We will continue to monitor this and to liaise with the regulator, Ofcom, to ensure tech companies do not get away with introducing new features that simply continue the same old story of racist abuse online.”
The Campaign Against Antisemitism accused TikTok of “rapidly serving up a diet of extremist hatred to teenagers.
“As if it wasn’t bad enough that users could promote antisemitic tropes in their comments using words, now they can do it with pictures. TikTok already has a poor reputation in addressing bias and misinformation on its network. It should explain how it plans to take on this even larger challenge,” a spokesperson said.
The Community Security Trust has also raised the alarm after observing accounts on TikTok exploiting the new tool to spread antisemitic content.
It has echoed calls for the platform to urgently review the new tool to prevent the promotion of hate or extremist material.
The Jewish Leadership Council also expressed concern: “The prevalence of online antisemitism and the ability of antisemites to use social media as a tool to spread misinformation and hate has been a long-held concern,” it said. It urged tech firms including TikTok to “improve their controls to protect users from hate”.
Amit Kalley, an online safety expert, said: “TikTok has, for some time, been a place where abuse is often unchecked. Whether it’s young people using it and seeing harmful content or adults posting harmful and offensive comments, the platform doesn’t seem to challenge inappropriate material effectively.
“The new feature… has led to a rise in antisemitic material being posted on TikTok, most of which goes unchecked by the social media giant. People are able to combine the use of AI with this new feature to create content that is deeply hurtful without thinking of the consequences of those actions, in this case, for the Jewish community.”
A TikTok spokesperson said: “At TikTok we oppose antisemitism in all its forms. [It] has no place on our platform and we immediately removed this content which breaches our policies.
“Last year, we proactively removed 92 per cent of hate speech content before it was reported to us and [we] work with partners such as the World Jewish Congress to remove hateful content.”
