A fairly recent addition to the ranks of the Israel-haters is the rightwing Internet personality Candace Owens, who has more than once crossed the line into blatant anti-Semitism. Devorah Goldman takes a careful look at the ideas that have shaped her and a handful of other influential, conspiracy-addled, social-media-addicted shapers of opinion:
Owens may or may not be a thoroughgoing anti-Semite; her winking approach to Jew hatred has been well documented. In just one example, she “liked” a twelve-word tweet joking about Jews drinking Christian blood. She later insisted she hadn’t read past the first four words. Owens never publicly apologized for this or similar incidents; she has defended herself at length without expressing regret. The former UFC fighter Jake Shields, who boasts nearly 650,000 followers on X, is less coy; he has spread multiple blood libels with impunity. But to focus on the right’s growing anti-Semitism, and to protest it as anti-Semitism qua anti-Semitism, is to miss the bigger picture.
Anti-Semitism, perhaps the world’s oldest conspiracy theory, is an adaptable sickness of the soul. . . . And conspiracy theories are attractive, maybe especially in the age of AI image manipulation and other mind-warping technologies. [Moreover], these theories flatter—they can help people feel insightful or powerful or as if they are a part of something. They provide easy, lightly researched answers to deep anxieties. They can also give people “permission” to deflect responsibility for challenges in their own lives—and this can be especially appealing for people who lack authority or control or trust in institutions.
Read more on Public Discourse: https://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2024/04/94686/