The project Bridge is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Servicio Espanol para la Internacionalizacion de la Educacion (SEPIE). Neither the European Union nor the National Agency SEPIE can be held responsible for them. -- Number: 2025-1-ES01-KA220-HED-000359236 --
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BRIDGE Main Challenge: A.5. Discrimination, racism and sociocultural polarisation, including hate speech
Antisemitic hate speech is ubiquitous on social media in Germany and often hard to detect. The project's own research found that 65% of antisemitic posts are subtle or implicit and 33% relate to Israel. Young people aged 18–30 struggle to recognise these contemporary forms of hate and tend to locate antisemitism only in 'other' groups, so polarising discourse stays normalised online.
RESPOND! combines basic and applied research in four interconnected studies: media diaries, group interviews, a Media Competence Training and teacher training. Young people document their own online encounters with hate; these data shape a bilingual six-module platform built on the '5 Rs' (Recognise, Reflect & React, Report, Repost, Retell). A train-the-trainer model spreads the approach to schools.
RESPOND! is a four-year research and action project (2021–2025) led by Touro University Berlin with the University of Potsdam, Hochschule Bielefeld and the Jewish Community of Berlin, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. It aims to build a sustainable 'dissenting voice' against antisemitic hate speech among young people aged 18–30. Four studies move from analysing media diaries and group interviews to a bilingual Media Competence Training and, finally, teacher training in Berlin, Potsdam and Bielefeld.
Antisemitic hate speech on social media dehumanises Jewish people and amplifies both traditional and contemporary prejudice. In Germany it is ubiquitous yet subtle. 65% of detected expressions are implicit and 33% are linked to the Middle East conflict. Young people aged 18–30 lack the media competence to recognise and counter these disguised narratives.
Subtle hate goes unnoticed without training, and young Germans tend to project antisemitism onto far-right 'others' while overlooking it in mainstream discourse. Polarising speech then becomes normal, democratic cohesion weakens, and digital spaces become unsafe in ways that limit minorities' equal participation in public and academic life.
RESPOND! directly addresses Challenge A5 (discrimination, racism and sociocultural polarisation, including hate speech). It builds an evaluated educational intervention on a national diagnosis of online antisemitism. It also strengthens critical media literacy, a need shared with Challenge A7.
Study 1: 47 young people kept media diaries for three weeks, yielding 1,100 posts and 2,222 data items. Study 2: group interviews explored competences and vulnerabilities. Study 3: a six-module Media Competence Training with the '5 Rs' was developed and evaluated against a control group. Study 4: trainers and teachers in Berlin, Potsdam and Bielefeld multiply the approach in schools.
RESPOND! Media Competence Training: interactive online platform (German/English)
Online training
The project's central educational resource is a bilingual digital platform that users can explore autonomously and in any order. It is structured into six thematic fields: content on Judaism and Jewish social ethics (approx. 12 min), 'Ich und meine Bubble' with reflections on one's own digital environment and community quotations (approx. 6 min), Deconstruction with videos and examples for dismantling hate narratives (approx. 12 min), Tolerance of ambiguity (approx. 8 min), Manifestations of antisemitism (approx. 10 min) and the '5 Rs' strategy (Recognise, Reflect & React, Report, Repost, Retell). Modules combine videos, interviews, explanatory texts and reflection questions. A controlled evaluation showed significant gains in knowledge, reflection and empathy and reduced antisemitic attitudes among participants. Free to use with attribution.
Teaching staff, Students, General Public
RESPOND! research blog: study results and current-affairs analyses
Digital publication
The bilingual project blog records the project's development and findings. It summarises results from the research phases, including the media-diary study with 47 participants (1,100 posts, 2,222 data fragments, 2022) and its core findings that 65% of antisemitic content is subtle and 33% is Israel-related. It also offers in-depth reflections on contemporary events, notably the debate around documenta fifteen (December 2022) and the difficulty institutions have in recognising antisemitism when it appears within postcolonial or social-justice narratives. The blog is used to receive questions and opinions from the community and can serve teachers as a source of current, evidence-based case material for discussing online antisemitism and polarisation in class.
Teaching staff, Students, Researchers, General Public
Scientific publications: 'I don't see a way in' (Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 2026); 'Scrolling against hate' (InMind Magazine, 2025); 'Antisemitismus in den sozialen Medien junger Menschen' (Politikum 4/2024); scoping review of existing trainings
Digital publication
Several articles arising from the project are available open access or via their DOIs. 'I don't see a way in' analyses emerging adults' responses to hate speech online; 'Scrolling against hate' presents the project's approach for a broader audience; the Politikum article discusses antisemitism in young people's social media in German. A scoping review of existing trainings identified a lack of programmes specifically addressing digital antisemitism and insufficient research on their actual impact. Together with the effectiveness evaluation of the training (control versus training group), these publications document the evidence base of the practice and are useful for researchers and lecturers who want to teach about online hate speech, media competence or intervention research. Links to the individual publications are available via the project website.
Teaching staff, Researchers, Professionals
https://www.fona21.org/en/joint-projects/respond-no-to-antisemitic-hate-speech-online