Extremist fanboys are glamorizing antisemitism — and some politicians keep playing along

A dangerous new subculture is infesting America’s digital landscape. Fueled by algorithm-driven online platforms, it nonetheless has a very real world, negative impact on the national conversation, public policy and politics. With financial incentives that can top thousands of dollars per month, its heroes are "influencers" who glamorize extremist violence, target Jews and become icons for a disaffected audience of young men seeking validation.

This is the rise of the terrorist fanboys.

Hasan Piker, a top-three contender in 2024 for my organization StopAntisemitism’s Antisemite of the Year, losing out only to Candace Owens, has become one of the most influential progressive voices online, with millions of followers.

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This is a man who said that "America deserved 9/11, dude. F--k it, I’m saying it." He dismissed the evidence of mass rape and murder by Hamas in the Oct, 7 massacre. Even though the terror group live-streamed their gory pillaging of Israel, Piker-hosted streams where he denied or dismissed Hamas sexual violence, going so far as to say, "It doesn’t matter if f–-king rapes happened on October 7th." Piker later admitted in the interview that his comments on 9/11 were "inappropriate." But apparently mass rapes are totally appropriate.

Nonetheless, he has been featured at a campaign rally with Democratic members of congress Rashida Tlaib, Summer Lee and with Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., has appeared on his Twitch stream, even though Piker explicitly called for the murder of Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., — something Piker later walked back after being suspended by Twitch. This is true influence not just online but IRL—in real life.

And the cultural mainstreaming of Piker continues apace, including a collaboration with comedian Trevor Noah and an appearance on the New York Times’ "The Opinion" podcast, further normalizing his revolting anti-Americanism, antisemitism and incitement to violence.

On the other end of the ideological spectrum is Nick Fuentes, who has engaged in Holocaust denial, saying he does not "buy" the existence of gas chambers and calling the Nazi genocide of Jews "exaggerated." He has built a following using unambiguously violent rhetoric.

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At one rally, when talking about "the Jews," he raged, "We’re in a holy war and I will tell you this: Because we’re willing to die in the holy war, we will make them die in the holy war. And they will go down. We have God on our side, and they will go down with their Satanic master. They have no future in America."

Popular influencer Sneako, whose real name is Nicolas Kenn De Balinthazy, appeared on stage to support Fuentes, declaring, "Nicholas J. Fuentes is going to be the future President of the United States of America." The sickest part is that the audience of real, live human beings cheered.

And yet Fuentes has been laundered by mainstream platforms. He appeared on Piers Morgan, who introduced him by saying, "The reason you’re hearing about him is because he’s popular." And he famously sat for a chummy two-hour interview with Tucker Carlson, who later called him "smart" and "hilarious," and asserted, "Fuentes is saying a lot of true things." Carlson also said that "Fuentes on some macro level is troubling because, he, his platform is an expression of something that has kind of taken over all political discourse which is identity politics: tribalism."

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Comedians like Theo Von and Dave Smith operate in a similar environment where false, bigoted, and violent comments are treated as "edgy" and "controversial" entertainment rather than threats. The lines between satire, irony, and endorsement grow increasingly blurry.

What brings the two ends of the political spectrum together into a horseshoe, in addition to antisemitism and incitement to violence, is money and attention. Algorithms reward outrage. Audiences reward transgression. And young, disaffected men reward those who validate their grievances with the most extreme language possible.

The result is a normalization process. Ideas that once would have ended careers now build them.

Some political leaders must stop legitimizing this ecosystem. That means refusing to campaign or appear with them and explicitly condemning influencers who traffic in dehumanizing rhetoric, regardless of their reach.

Cultural institutions must enforce consistent standards, not selectively applied outrage. Platforms must confront the role their algorithms play in amplifying extremism under the guise of engagement.

And audiences must recognize their own culpability. Consumption is endorsement in an attention economy.

The terrorist fanboy phenomenon is not confined to the fringes. It is reshaping discourse and eroding moral boundaries. When violence is glamorized and antisemitism is repackaged as commentary, the consequences extend far beyond any single community.

This is not just a Jewish problem. It is a societal one. Because a culture that learns to admire extremism will not contain it. It will spread it.