Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is facing renewed scrutiny after arguing that young Americans oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza because they are consuming “pure propaganda” and “totally made up” videos on social media. Speaking at a conference hosted in New York City by Israel Hayom, a far right Israeli publication aligned with billionaire Miriam Adelson, Clinton portrayed youth opposition to Israel’s military campaign as a problem rooted in ignorance rather than in the widely documented destruction and mass civilian deaths in Gaza.
During her remarks, Clinton said that the sentiments among young people following the October 7, 2023 attack are a “serious problem for democracy” in both Israel and the United States, adding that Israel has the “worst PR of any group.” She claimed there had been an “organized effort” to spread anti Israel sentiment online immediately after the attack. She said that when speaking with students at Columbia University, “it was very difficult” to discuss the issue “because they did not know history.” Clinton said, “They had very little context. And what they were being told on social media was not just one-sided, it was pure propaganda,” later explaining that many are watching “short form videos, some of them totally made up.”
Her comments framed youth criticism of Israel as a result of misinformation rather than an evaluation of documented events. Clinton said that people doing Israeli public relations work should focus on younger audiences. “It’s not just the usual suspects. It is a lot of young Jewish Americans who don’t know the history, and don’t understand.” She also said, “A lot of the challenge is with younger people.”
Her remarks came amid growing recognition across international institutions and human rights organizations that Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute genocide. According to the second article you provided, the consensus that Israel is committing genocide has grown to include “international and Israeli human rights groups, a United Nations panel, Holocaust scholars, and nearly 40% of Jewish Americans.” Since October 2023, Israel has been “bombarding Gaza and starving its population of more than 2 million Palestinians,” with reports that Israel has killed “more than 70,000 Palestinians” and continued to restrict humanitarian aid even after a ceasefire deal reached in October.
Clinton’s argument that young people oppose Israel because of deceptive videos also contrasts with findings from respected human rights organizations. Author Jason Overstreet referenced reports from Amnesty International and Israel based B’Tselem documenting testimonies from Israeli soldiers and the destruction of Gaza’s food system. He said, “I guess Hillary Clinton also thinks that Amnesty International called what’s happening in Gaza a genocide because they saw some videos on TikTok and just ‘did not know history.’” Overstreet added, “Young people’s views on Israel are based on young people knowing that Israel has committed genocide.”
Clinton’s appearance at the summit underscored the political alignment behind her statements. The event was hosted by Israel Hayom, described as a far right Israeli publication whose publisher, Miriam Adelson, is identified as a Donald Trump megadonor. Adelson wrote in November 2023 that pro Palestinian protesters “are dead to us.” Her late husband, Republican donor Sheldon Adelson, said in 2014 that Palestinians are “an invented people.” Other speakers at the summit included Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz. Senior adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Slevin, noted the irony of Clinton appearing at an event connected to Adelson while claiming that “the kids are being radicalized by anti-Israel propaganda.”
Clinton’s statements also align with her long standing record of supporting Israeli policies and opposing movements for Palestinian rights. As a senator, she backed legislation deepening Israel’s occupation of Palestine, including a 2006 resolution opposing supposed “Terrorism” by Palestinians. That year she praised Israel’s bombardments of Lebanon and Gaza, which “killed over a thousand civilians.” As secretary of state under President Barack Obama, she helped enforce the administration’s policy of “no daylight” between the United States and Israel. During her 2015 presidential campaign, she wrote to AIPAC megadonor Haim Saban condemning the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement and asking how to “make countering BDS a priority.” In 2016 she told AIPAC she had worked to “deepen America’s ties with Israel.”
Her repeated claim that Palestinians turned down a “generous deal” at the 2000 Camp David Summit has been challenged by people directly involved in the negotiations. As the source material notes, Robert Malley, a key Camp David negotiator, has debunked the narrative and warned that Clinton and others use the myth to “justify Israel’s genocide.” Drop Site News stated that “she’s the one getting the history wrong,” including at the Israel Hayom event.
Clinton’s assertion that a “generational divide” explains opposition to Israel is also contradicted by polling. While young people are more likely to oppose Israel’s attacks, polling cited in the source material shows that every demographic has shifted against Israel since the genocide began. Adil Haque, executive editor at Just Security, described it as a “periodic reminder that the biggest shift in attitudes toward Israel and Palestine has been among older Democrats.” In 2022, 43 percent of Democrats aged 50 and older held an unfavorable view of Israel. After the Gaza assault, that figure rose to 66 percent. By comparison, Democrats under 49 saw a smaller increase, from 62 percent disapproving in 2022 to 71 percent today.
Haque observed that Democrats “get their news from CNN more than other mainstream sources,” adding, “If you’re a 60-year-old with grandkids and you read or watch CNN’s Gaza reporting, you don’t need TikTok to know that what’s happening is very, very wrong.”
Dylan Williams, vice president of government affairs at the Center for International Policy, similarly rejected Clinton’s argument that misinformation explains public opinion shifts. “I’m nearly 50. I don’t use TikTok. I listen to NPR ‘Morning Edition’ and read the Financial Times daily,” he said. “I’m a lawyer who has worked on Israel-Palestine issues for the last 20 years. The evidence I’ve seen that Israel committed atrocities including genocide in Gaza is overwhelming.”
Clinton’s remarks also echo the complaints of former Obama White House speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz, who said of young Jews, “Anything that we try to say to them, they’re hearing it through this wall of carnage.” Hurwitz’s comments drew condemnation but highlighted that many young Americans are forming judgments based on widely available footage of devastation in Gaza.
By attributing youth opposition to Israel to “short-form videos” instead of documented destruction, Clinton shifts attention away from Israel’s actions and the United States’ role in supporting them. Her claims also mirror broader political efforts to blame platforms like TikTok for public disapproval of Israel. Related reporting notes that key supporters of a TikTok ban are among top recipients of donations from the pro Israel lobby group AIPAC.
Critics argue that Clinton’s framing undermines the legitimacy of youth moral and political agency at a time when evidence of mass civilian harm in Gaza is widely available. It also obscures the broader trend of declining support for Israel across all demographics as the consequences of Israel’s assault become increasingly difficult for Americans to ignore.
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