A platform widely used by gamers for livestreaming announced updates to its hate speech policy on Friday, explicitly banning the word “Zionist” when used as a veiled insult targeting individuals or groups.

Twitch, an Amazon-owned company with over 240 million active users, implemented the change following growing criticism, including from a prominent lawmaker who recently accused the platform of fostering antisemitism in a letter addressed to its leadership.

In a statement shared on its official blog, Twitch clarified, “We prohibit the use of terms that may not be harmful or abusive in isolation, but can be used as a slur or to denigrate others in certain contexts.”

The updated policy allows for discussions of the ideology or political movement behind the establishment of Israel, provided the term isn’t used to demean Jews or Israelis.

“Using the term to refer to the political movement, whether in a supportive or critical way, does not violate our hateful conduct policy,” the blog post explained. “Our goal isn’t to stifle conversation about or criticism of an institution or ideology, but to prevent coded hate directed at individuals and groups of people.”

Twitch further elaborated on the updated policy in its community guidelines, noting that “Zionists” would be treated as a stand-in for Jews or Israelis when the term is used in contexts that promote harm, violence, dehumanization, or antisemitic stereotypes.

Examples of acceptable and unacceptable uses were provided. Phrases like, “Zionist settlers keep encroaching Palestinian borders,” would be allowed, while insults such as, “Zionist [name of animal],” would violate the policy.

Earlier in November, Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York, a staunch supporter of Israel within the Democratic Party, urged Twitch to address what he described as unchecked antisemitism on its platform or risk facing Congressional investigation. Torres specifically drew attention to comments made by high-profile Twitch streamers in the context of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

One example highlighted by Torres involved Hasan Piker, a streamer with close to 3 million followers, who reportedly minimized or dismissed the gravity of sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attacks. Piker has also made inflammatory statements about Orthodox Jews, describing them as “inbred,” and insulted a Jewish individual as a “bloodthirsty pig dog.”

The Anti-Defamation League also called on Twitch last month to take stronger action against antisemitism on the platform.

Twitch’s decision to regulate the use of “Zionist” aligns with a similar policy adopted in July by Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.

The updated guidelines come shortly after Twitch issued an apology for a separate issue involving Israeli users. Following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Twitch had implemented a safeguard to block violent content from being shared. However, the measure inadvertently made it more difficult for Israeli users to create accounts, a restriction the company acknowledged and addressed in its statement.

{Matzav.com}