But the issue is we’re rarely discussing actual forms of bigotry in the news stories that then feed into these poll numbers. We’re hearing that Joe Biden or the ADL says there’s rampant antisemitism at protests, but then they don’t detail what they’re actually referring to and the college paper actually on the ground interviews some Jewish protesters who are unperturbed by “from the river to the sea”, explain that they were blocking all students regardless of faith or ethnicity, and just find the accusation confusing.
Their comparison point for the poll was 2003, but would you expect a poll held in the aftermath of Tree of Life to be lower or higher than the current time? And what percentage of those poll respondents would say antisemitism is worse on college campuses or conservative Facebook groups? I think we’re getting a true and correct belief (“antisemitism is a problem”), but due to propaganda campaigns for the genocide, not actual increased awareness of bigotry.
If the media is tacking on “antisemitism is rampant” on every news story reporting on anti-Israel protests, but don’t feel it’s necessary when Republicans welcome in proponents of the Great Replacement Theory with open arms, it’s hard to say the effect is actually increasing the awareness of bigotry. FFS, Elise “Great Replacement” Stefanik was the poster child for the Republican antisemitism task force and I only saw it mentioned in the most progressive media. And if the primary effect isn’t raising awareness (one my say making people more “woke”), it’s entirely appropriate to measure the limited or non-existent pro-wokeness impact against the very visible pro-genocide impact.