Following the comments of actor and comedian Sasha Baron Cohen against the social media networks, Yaakov Hagoel, Vice Chairman of World Zionist Organization, emphasized the importance to continue fighting against anti-Semitism on social media:
"Google, Facebook and YouTube are used as a tremendous platform to convey anti-Semitic messages and Holocaust denial," Hagoel said. "We must change the approach and prevent incitement. It is time for social networks to be held responsible!"
"I once again call upon the great and leading social networks: it is time to stop training and start acting. I’m glad that public opinion leaders are starting to understand the problem and joining the call to eradicate anti-Semitism on the internet. "
On Thursday, Baron Cohen said that "if Facebook were around in the 1930s, it would have allowed Hitler to post 30-second ads on his 'solution' to the 'Jewish problem."
Facebook, for its part, denied the statement, claiming that "hate speech is actually banned on our platform. We ban people who advocate for violence and we remove anyone who praises or supports it."