Antisemitism comes up often in NPR news stories. Most recently, journalists have been documenting the federal government's efforts to deport legal residents as punishment for their involvement in protests against Israel and in support of Palestinians. Republicans and other observers say the protesters sometimes cross into antisemitic speech as they criticize Israel.
NPR journalists have reported dozens of stories and interviews tangentially related to the deportations and proposed deportations, including how other students are reacting, what Jewish and Muslim organizers have to say and even how other countries are reacting.
An NPR listener asked why NPR reporters never ask Jewish sources to discuss the Muslim roots of antisemitism. This listener believes that the Jewish sources that appear on NPR skew to the political left and do not represent American Jews.
To examine this question, we looked at every source that has appeared in NPR stories and interviews about antisemitism over the last two months. We interviewed several of them. And we also interviewed the head of a research nonprofit that tracks antisemitism. Read on to see our complete analysis.
We also spotlight a podcast series that takes listeners into a family struggle over one member's embrace of conspiracy theories.
Does NPR's reporting on antisemitism distort the experience of Jews?
David Levinson wrote on March 16: NPR’s articles on antisemitism only quote fringe, far left Jewish groups. They have yet to write a single article about the reality of Muslim antisemitism — during a global intifada against Jews. Their refusal to report on mainstream Jewish views and ALL forms of antisemitism suggests institutional bias.
We looked at every NPR story over a two-month period that mentioned antisemitism. During that time frame, NPR covered several storylines. In addition to reports on the federal government's attempt to deport legal immigrants who participated in protests, reporters sought opinion on whether Elon Musk offered up a Nazi salute on Inauguration Day and also interviewed people about their views on protecting free speech and punishing offensive speech.
Eight stories quoted 13 Jewish people and organizations. Those voices represented a wide range of viewpoints.
Here's a sampling of what they said, in chronological order:
- Conservative commentator Dave Rubin said on Jan. 23 that he didn't think Elon Musk did a Nazi salute on Inauguration Day.
- U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., in that same story condemned the gesture as a Nazi salute.
- The ADL and the Zionist Organization of America, both conservative Jewish organizations, were cited in a Feb. 6 story as being in support of the executive order authorizing the deportation of legal immigrants involved in protests against Israel's bombing of Gaza, although the ADL advocated for due process.
- In that same article the non-partisan Jewish Council for Public Affairs was opposed to the deportations.
- University of Massachusetts Amherst student Maia Shteyman described her experience of antisemitism during protests on her campus in a March 3 Morning Edition story.
- In that same story, Mark Goldfeder of the National Jewish Advocacy Center described his organization's belief that some protesters are "coordinating with Hamas."
- Rick Perlstein, a historian and writer for the American Prospect who has studied conservatives, was a guest on the March 14 It's Been a Minute podcast, where he said, "So the idea that these protests are antisemitic is a project of gaslighting."
- Jeremy Ben-Ami of J Street denounced the Trump administration's "nefarious agenda" in an NPR website story about the threats to pull federal research funding from Columbia University.
- Scott Simon interviewed Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., March 15 on Weekend Edition Saturday about his new book, Antisemitism in America: A Warning. For nine minutes, Schumer discussed the topic in-depth, including what antisemitism looks like when it comes from liberals and from conservatives.
- Kenneth Stern of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate told Morning Edition host Leila Fadel on March 20 that he believed the Trump administration's actions were making Jews less safe.
That's a broad range of experiences and political viewpoints, from conservative to liberal.
Ben-Ami told me that his organization represents the political center of the American Jewish community, which is the largest group. "The median American Jew is a liberal Democrat," he said. A large minority, between 25 and 30 percent, are conservatives who support Donald Trump and rarely question Israel. A smaller minority, between 10 and 15 percent, are much further to the left and opposed to Zionism, or support for a Jewish state.
When I asked him how he knew this, Ben-Ami said, "There's an intense amount of public opinion research that Jews do about themselves."
So, should NPR be doing more to cover the connection between the Muslim faith and antisemitism?
"It really depends on the context. I mean antisemitism historically has religious roots and actually came from Christianity," said Stern of the Bard Center, adding that if white nationalists are shouting antisemitic slogans like they did in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, the existence of Muslim antisemitism would be irrelevant.
However, in some of the campus protests where there may be evidence of antisemitic speech, Stern said the connection to all forms of antisemitism, including Muslim, was more relevant. "Antisemitism exists on the right and on the left," he said. "It's not always important to talk about each source" in every story.
The Middle East Media Research Institute tracks antisemitic messaging throughout the world, including across media and social media. Director Steven Stalinsky told me that his organization is careful to differentiate between speech that is anti-Israel and speech that is antisemitic, adding, "Sometimes, though, it overlaps."
NPR could do more to explore and explain that overlap, with the goal of educating its audience. In doing so, Stalinsky said he would like to hear voices from the Muslim world who are speaking out against antisemitism.
Exploring whether there is a connection between antisemitism and the Muslim faith would require a skilled approach to avoid suggesting that all Muslims are antisemitic. Ben-Ami pointed out that, in the current political climate, that connection is more likely to be used to start a political fight than it is to lead to a deeper understanding.
Given the range of Jewish views on antisemitism that I found represented on NPR in the last two months, this current body of reporting does an adequate job capturing the diversity of viewpoints among American Jews.
That said, incidents of antisemitism are clearly on the rise in America and have been for some time. The NPR audience would benefit from deeper reporting on what this looks like and how these insults, slurs and attacks are related to a long history that is easily forgotten.
More coverage of antisemitism would enable people to better participate in the public debate about what speech should be protected and what speech should be punished.
A father and son grapple with a difference in realities
Conspiracy theories are known to cause friction in families, and push some to a breaking point. "Alternate Realities," a new three-part series from NPR's Embedded podcast, brings listeners on a yearlong journey with one family. For years, reporter Zach Mack watched his father fall into a deep rabbit hole of misinformation. Then one day about a year ago, Mack's dad bet him $10,000 that 10 things would take place sometime in 2024. To Mack, the list was filled with politically apocalyptic predictions. Through remarkably candid conversations with his family, friends and experts, Mack brings us a heartbreaking and vulnerable story that will resonate with anyone who has political differences with their loved ones. — Amaris Castillo
The Office of the Public Editor is a team. Reporters Amaris Castillo and Nicole Slaughter Graham and copy editor Merrill Perlman make this newsletter possible. Illustrations are by Carlos Carmonamedina. We are still reading all of your messages on Facebook, Instagram, Threads and from our inbox. As always, keep them coming.
Kelly McBride
NPR Public Editor
Chair, Craig Newmark Center for Ethics & Leadership at the Poynter Institute
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