Since October 7, hostilities between Hamas and Israel have been the subject of a wave of conspiracy theories and disinformation on social networks. This unprecedented wave of conspiratorial content is testing the platforms’ previously highlighted moderation policies.
Since the Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7, social media has been flooded with disinformation. Within a few hours, platforms like Twitter and Tiktok have become the scene of a real communications war. And among this false information we find numerous conspiracy theories: the thesis of manufactured terrorism, images borrowed from other conflicts, propaganda or disinformation tinged with anti-Semitism.
Rudy Reichstadt explains that the October 7 attack and its aftermath in Israel and Gaza “bring together all the ingredients that give the appearance of a conspiracy version.” He cites “the surprise, the magnitude of the attack, which puts us in a state of astonishment, but astonishment is capable of paralyzing reflection.” In this context, conspiracy theorists offer their own analysis of this conflict that has been going on for more than seventy years. Conspiracy influencer Valerian Ronzeau notably posted a video on Twitter on October 9th in which he expressed doubts about the attack and stated that he believes Israel has an army that is too powerful to be vulnerable.
We find this type of theory “in almost every attack,” recalls Rudy Reichstadt, director of Conspiracy Watch. Tristan Mendès-France also points out that as of October 16, the far right in the US tried to “use the hashtag #BibiKnew to attack because it was facing internal challenges related to its judicial reform.
An unprecedented wave of misinformation and conspiracy theories
This conspiracy mechanism was implemented very quickly and on an unprecedented scale. “A few days after September 7, X announced that there had been 50 million publications in 48 hours, which is phenomenal,” says Tristan Mendès France. For the lecturer at the University of Paris, who specializes in digital cultures, “this phenomenal volume around this sequence represents an opportunity for audiences and visibility for the proponents of disinformation and conspiracy theories”.
“Emotions favor unverified or poorly verified information content”
Rudy Reichstadt
franceinfo
This content is not necessarily the prerogative of conspiracy theorists. Some Internet users spread them without fully realizing that they are actually conspiracy theories. Rudy Reichstadt thus highlights the difference between “active, intentional disinformation aimed at deceiving the public, and misinformation, which consists of being exposed to false information and sincerely believing it.” For Tristan Mendès France, it is precisely “that most of the conspiracy theories and disinformation that we see circulating are the work of people who are victims of misinformation”.
In view of this observation, Rudy Reichstadt urges extreme caution. He encourages netizens to take a step back before reacting immediately: “When we have sensational information that is likely to provoke extreme emotions such as anger or terror, we should be careful; if there is a lack or shortage of information sources, we should be careful. “Be vigilant,” he emphasizes.
“War between Israel and Hamas, a new conspiratorial moment”, this is the 54th episode of Complorama with Rudy Reichstadt, director of Conspiracy Watch, and Tristan Mendès France, lecturer and member of the Conspiracy Observatory, specialist in digital cultures. A podcast that can be found on the Franceinfo website, the Radio France application and several other platforms such as Apple Podcasts, Podcast Addict, Spotify or Deezer.