The surge in anti-Indian hate on X during the final weeks of 2024, fuelled by far-right supporters of President-elect Donald Trump opposing the H1B visa programme, has been described as “a form of organised, systematic hatred, fanned by powerful actors” and a sign of the dominance of white supremacist ideology on the platform, according to a new study.
The Washington-based think tank, Center for the Study of Organised Hate, released a report on Thursday analysing a surge of anti-Indian posts on X. The study reviewed 128 posts with the highest viewership, shared between December 22 and January 3.
According to the report, these posts amassed a total of 138.54 million views by January 3, with 36 posts exceeding one million views each. The posts originated from 85 accounts, 64 of which – accounting for three-fourths – were Premium accounts displaying blue verification badges.
The authors of the report observed that “given the fact that controversial, sensational, prejudiced, and hateful views receive more engagement, X’s business model has effectively incentivised hate speech, presenting it as an opportunity for monetization as well as for building fame and influence”