Research & Analysis

As they rack up littering charges for distributing propaganda, some individuals associated with the antisemitic and extremist Goyim Defense League (GDL)—including leader Jon Minadeo—have adopted pseudo-legal “sovereign citizen” tactics in a misguided attempt to escape legal troubles. The sovereign citizen movement is a far-right, anti-government extremist faction whose adherents claim that the government is illegitimate and has no jurisdiction or authority over them…

Sport is the setting of some of humanity’s greatest stories. Through the perspective of athletes, teams, fans, coaches, and others, we experience narratives filled with emotions and learn life lessons, like the fulfillment of success and the devastation of failure. Some of these stories are as short as an afternoon, like a pickup basketball game with friends, while others are lifelong journeys, such as unwavering fandom for a favorite team or the privilege of competing on the world&rsquo…

On June 10, 2023, eighteen white supremacists – from two different neo-Nazi groups - held three separate demonstrations in Florida. At least six participants traveled from out of state for the events, which took place outside Disney World in Orlando and at a park in Lakeland. These gatherings show how profoundly a small group of extremists can impact entire communities -- and make residents feel that the hate is local. At the gathering in Orlando, thirteen individuals associated with…

As artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies become more user-friendly, extremists and conspiracy theorists are using deepfakes, AI-generated audio and other forms of synthetic media to spread harmful, hateful and misleading content online.   Background & Definitions Synthetic media is media content which has been fully or partially generated by technology, typically through artificial intelligence or machine learning processes. This includes any combination…

Every year on May 15, Palestinians and their supporters, including many anti-Israel activists, mark Nakba Day (“catastrophe” in Arabic) as a day of mourning the creation of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948. Events also highlight the plight of Palestinian refugees and advocate for the Right of Return. Historically, there have been numerous instances of inflammatory and antisemitic language espoused by anti-Israel activists at Nakba Day events. The 2023 events were no exception. …

Data compiled by the ADL Center on Extremism (COE) shows that QAnon-related content has surged on Twitter since Elon Musk’s takeover of the platform last fall. QAnon is a decentralized, far-right political movement rooted in a baseless conspiracy theory that the world is controlled by a cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles known as the “Deep State,” which can only be stopped by former President Trump, and that these individuals will be brought to justice during a violent…

Twitter’s decision to reinstate influential banned accounts allowed CTS to examine how they act as nodes in broader networks and exploit inadequate policies

ADL CTS highlights 6 questions for policymakers and industry concerning the advent of generative artificial intelligence such as Chat GPT and dall-e

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) has dominated news headlines for its potential to transform how we work, write, and play. For example, OpenAI’s ChatGPT allows people to ask various questions, summarize a book or write a new song in the style of their favorite musical artist. AI-enhanced search tools return summaries of online content, rather than a list of links to different webpages. Other tools create realistic photos or pieces of artwork from a description. Some tools create…

On the afternoon of May 6, 2023, a gunman opened fire in a mall parking lot in the Dallas suburb of Allen, Texas. The shooter killed eight people and wounded seven more before a police officer shot and killed him. Authorities later identified the gunman as 33-year-old Mauricio Martinez Garcia. Unlike some other recent perpetrators of mass shootings, Garcia composed no manifesto or document explaining the reason for his violent spree.  However, he did leave behind voluminous writings,…

Policy and enforcement developments since Elon Musk acquisition of Twitter and what they mean for enforcement of hate speech policies and protecting users.

Preliminary research by the ADL Center on Extremism appears to show Mauricio Garcia, the suspect in the Allen, Texas, mass shooting, was obsessed with violence and subscribed to a range of extremist ideologies, including antisemitism, violent misogyny and white supremacy. An initial assessment of a massive social media trove, which ADL researchers can link to Garcia with a high degree of confidence, reveals a preoccupation with violence that manifests in a wide range of hate, including…