Social Media Giants Accused Of Ignoring Antisemitism Royal Commission

Social media companies have been accused of ignoring or obstructing Australia’s Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion, as pressure mounts on the Albanese Government to get tougher on big tech.

Counsel assisting the inquiry, Richard Lancaster SC, told the commission that some platforms had “failed to engage at all”, with no response received from X or Telegram.

Reddit and Twitch responded only in limited fashion, pointing the inquiry to publicly available policies, while fringe social media platform Gab was described as “openly hostile”.

According to Lancaster, a man claiming to act as an attorney for Gab said the platform was an American company that would “publish what it likes when it likes”, while Gab’s chief executive reportedly said he did not “answer to Australian bureaucrats or state-sponsored censors”.

Gab, founded in 2016 by Andrew Torba, is an alt-tech social media platform that markets itself as a “free speech” alternative to mainstream services such as Facebook and X. It has been widely described by researchers and media outlets as a haven for far-right and alt-right users.

The Sydney hearings are examining the role of social media and traditional media in the spread of antisemitism, following the December 2025 Bondi Beach terror attack.

Lancaster described social media as “perhaps the most significant vector” for the spread of antisemitism and hate in the community.

The inquiry was told that online moderation systems remain too slow, opaque and reactive, despite some platforms engaging with Jewish community representatives.

Meta, TikTok, Google, Facebook and LinkedIn have agreed to appear before the commission, but questions remain over whether social media companies are doing enough to remove harmful content before it spreads.

The hearings also raised concerns about the growing use of AI in content moderation.

Lancaster said AI could help platforms moderate at scale but warned it should be used to support experienced human moderators, not replace them.

He said coded antisemitic language and symbols were being missed by automated systems, including deliberate misspellings and emoji-based references designed to evade detection.

The evidence comes as the federal government prepares to double penalties for breaches of Australia’s under-16 social media ban from $49.5 million to $99 million.

The proposed reforms would also give the eSafety Commissioner stronger powers to compel platforms, age-assurance providers and app stores to hand over evidence showing what steps they have taken to block underage users.