The ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine has complicated how reporters cover Jewish issues, including antisemitism.
Arno Rosenfeld, an enterprise reporter at The Forward, a Jewish-focused newspaper, spoke on how journalists can navigate these challenges during a panel on writing about antisemitism at MediaFest 25.
Covering antisemitism matters in the same way that reporting on racism or sexism does, Rosenfeld said. “Journalists have a responsibility to cover diverse communities and ensure audiences see themselves reflected in stories,” he said.
“It’s not always understood that antisemitism often connects to other forms of extremism,” Rosenfeld said. “It doesn’t just impact Jews. It impacts society as a whole.”
With numerous headlines claiming a rise in antisemitism after the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2024, attacks on Israel, Rosenfeld urged reporters to approach the topic carefully.
A major challenge, Rosenfeld said, is that there is no single agreed-upon definition of antisemitism. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition, most commonly adopted by governments and universities, describes antisemitism as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.” The organization often treats denying Israel’s right to exist as presumptively antisemitic.
Other groups, including the Nexus Document, have tried to add nuance. Created by liberal Jewish Democrats, it differentiates opposing Zionism out of hatred for Jews and opposing Zionism for political reasons. The Jerusalem Declaration goes further, saying it’s antisemitic to deny Jewish people equal rights in Israel, but does not call for a binational state.
“When people debate antisemitism today, especially around campuses, they’re often talking past each other, each coming from one of these frameworks without naming it,” Rosenfeld said.
He also noted that U.S. law complicates how discrimination against Jewish people is handled. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals from discrimination based on race, color or national origin, but religion is handled separately under the Justice Department.
That means discrimination in these cases is not always treated the same as other forms of bias under federal law, Rosenfeld explained
Relying too heavily on data from advocacy organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is dangerous, Rosenfeld warned, because their numbers can be misleading. He pointed to an ADL headline claiming that 83 percent of Jewish students have experienced or witnessed antisemitism as an example of data that should be verified before being reported.
Rosenfeld encouraged reporters to check methodology and compare figures with more impartial sources, such as the Pew Research Center and the American Jewish Committee.
Antisemitism is a complex issue that requires both sensitivity and accuracy. Reporters should understand the diversity within Jewish communities and be transparent about data and definitions when covering it.
“When covering antisemitism, know your definitions and your data,” Rosenfeld said. “Understand the spectrum of thought within Jewish communities, there isn’t a single Jewish view.”