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January 24, 2024

My students of American politics at Touro College, Israel, conducted a non-scientific in-person survey of 106 Jews.  They carried out the survey on the heels of the Iowa Republican caucuses and the 100th day of Israelis kidnapped and held in the grips of Hamas.

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An overwhelming majority of interviewees (75) are Sabbath-observing females, and 31 are males.  Two thirds were in Israel at the time and about one third in cities on America’s East Coast.  Sixty-four of the interviewees are between 18 and 28 years old.  Middle-aged individuals and seniors make up the rest of the interviewees, with the oldest person being 89 years old.  The survey reveals several general trends, foremost of which is that Jews overwhelmingly care about the welfare of Israel and Israelis.

Influence of Social Media

Empathy of Jews for other Jews has been a hallmark of the Jewish community from time immemorial.  The three major ingredients building this sense of community are early and continuing education with a definitive pro-Jewish, pro-Israel curriculum; the intention of educators with parental support to instill such empathy; and complementing bed and board — i.e., where and with whom Jews live and share meals and talk.

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It does not surprise us that our interviewees feel a strong attachment to other Jews in danger and uneasiness with outsiders when Jews are the object of derision by a plethora of world leaders, academics, religious extremists, and antisemites.  Their angst is felt in answers to several questions dealing with the effectiveness and policies of American and Israeli leaders and priorities.  

Most of those interviewed know plenty about current events.  Some are unaware of the reasons behind their specific opinions.  They struggle to explain how and why they develop their opinions.  They “merely hear [news] from sources they like or mostly agree with,” as one interviewer notes in her summary analysis.  These people form opinions in their youth from sources that confirm their biases formed in school and at home.

We find this sense of community curious because our young respondents primarily get their news from social media and some family and friends.  Observers have studied social media platforms long enough to conclude that they are rampant with anti-Israel propaganda and antisemitism.  Older respondents primarily get their news from traditional sources, including television, radio, newspapers, books and magazines, family, and friends.  The news-sourcing trend confirms what Pew Research and others report from surveys of all Americans.

Perhaps our younger respondents view social media Jew-hating rants as a challenge to their character and personage that hardens their pro-Jewish, pro-Israel views.  For example, interviewees support Israel’s conduct of the war and show 5-to-1 support for the election of Donald Trump over President Biden, despite Biden’s personal orders to supply Israel with nearly limitless military aid.  There is near unanimous support for the claim that Israel’s government is effectively pursuing Hamas terrorists and the return of the hostages.

We can only guesstimate the impact of social media’s pervasive anti-Israel and anti-Jew hate messages.  Fifty-eight of 106 interviewees self-describe as politically moderate conservatives, and a mere five are self-described liberals.

Our assessment is that the religiously observant incline toward conservative political positions.  This matches Pew Research studies about the importance of religion in adult life and political affiliation.  In our survey, the vast majority of respondents do not trust the U. S. government “to be honest with its people.”  Those of my students surveyed trust Israel’s government to be honest with its people by 58 to 18, though 30 responded with “I don’t know.”