Lev Topor – författare

A novel analysis that combines traditional theories on anti-Semitism with evidence from 76 nations to explain the determinants that drive discrimination against Jews.Why Do People Discriminate against Jews? provides a data-rich analysis of the causes of discrimination against Jews across the globe. Using the tools of comparative political science, Jonathan Fox and Lev Topor examine the causes of both government-based and societal discrimination against Jews in 76 countries. As they stress, anti-Semitism is an attitude, but discrimination is an action. In examining anti-Jewish discrimination, they combine ideas and theories from classic studies of anti-Semitism with social science theories on the causes of discrimination. On the one hand, conspiracy theories, a major topic in the anti-Semitism literature, are relatively unexplored in the social science literature as a potential instigator of discrimination. On the other, social science theories developed to explain how governments justify discrimination against Muslims are rarely formally applied to the processes that lead to discrimination against Jews. Fox and Topor conclude by identifying three potential causes of discrimination: religious causes, anti-Zionism, and belief in conspiracy theories about Jewish power and world domination. They conclude that while all three influence discrimination against Jews, belief in conspiracy theories is the strongest determinant. The most rigorous and geographically wide-ranging analysis of discrimination against Jews to date, this book reshapes our understanding of the persecution of religious minorities in general and the Jewish people in particular.

A novel analysis that combines traditional theories on anti-Semitism with evidence from 76 nations to explain the determinants that drive discrimination against Jews.Why Do People Discriminate against Jews? provides a data-rich analysis of the causes of discrimination against Jews across the globe. Using the tools of comparative political science, Jonathan Fox and Lev Topor examine the causes of both government-based and societal discrimination against Jews in 76 countries. As they stress, anti-Semitism is an attitude, but discrimination is an action. In examining anti-Jewish discrimination, they combine ideas and theories from classic studies of anti-Semitism with social science theories on the causes of discrimination. On the one hand, conspiracy theories, a major topic in the anti-Semitism literature, are relatively unexplored in the social science literature as a potential instigator of discrimination. On the other, social science theories developed to explain how governments justify discrimination against Muslims are rarely formally applied to the processes that lead to discrimination against Jews. Fox and Topor conclude by identifying three potential causes of discrimination: religious causes, anti-Zionism, and belief in conspiracy theories about Jewish power and world domination. They conclude that while all three influence discrimination against Jews, belief in conspiracy theories is the strongest determinant. The most rigorous and geographically wide-ranging analysis of discrimination against Jews to date, this book reshapes our understanding of the persecution of religious minorities in general and the Jewish people in particular.

Phishing for Nazis is an evidence-based, undercover study of neo-Nazi communities on anonymous communication platforms that helps to shine a light on the dark web. It unveils how hatred and conspiracies spread and thrive online and how white supremacy is becoming prominent as extremists find shelter in the online dank underbelly of society.Phishing for Nazis explains how online manifestations of hate radicalize people into taking “real-world” action, such as shooting sprees. Methodologically, this book is unique, as it incorporates undercover cyberethnography, a method frequently used by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, unlike traditional academic studies of racism or social behavior that rely on secondary sources or surveys.With a particular interest on how race issues translate online, the book presents the true phenomenon of racism without relying on political correctness or whitewashing. It contributes to the field of cyber communication, as it details why and how people communicate and manage entire communities without knowing one another. The book also contributes to public policy, regulators, and technology companies as they deal with the practice of online anonymity and extremism.

Phishing for Nazis is an evidence-based, undercover study of neo-Nazi communities on anonymous communication platforms that helps to shine a light on the dark web. It unveils how hatred and conspiracies spread and thrive online and how white supremacy is becoming prominent as extremists find shelter in the online dank underbelly of society.Phishing for Nazis explains how online manifestations of hate radicalize people into taking “real-world” action, such as shooting sprees. Methodologically, this book is unique, as it incorporates undercover cyberethnography, a method frequently used by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, unlike traditional academic studies of racism or social behavior that rely on secondary sources or surveys.With a particular interest on how race issues translate online, the book presents the true phenomenon of racism without relying on political correctness or whitewashing. It contributes to the field of cyber communication, as it details why and how people communicate and manage entire communities without knowing one another. The book also contributes to public policy, regulators, and technology companies as they deal with the practice of online anonymity and extremism.

Synthetic Hate investigates how extremists exploit artificial intelligence to modernize the world’s oldest hatred. Antisemitism - rooted in religious discrimination, medieval blood libels, Nazi propaganda, and contemporary Islamist and far-right conspiracies - has found new life through generative tools that can produce persuasive text, images, audio, and video at scale.Drawing on documented cases and controlled demonstrations, the book shows how LLMs, deepfakes, bots, and recommendation systems enable cheap, rapid, and adaptive propaganda - memes that evade moderation, fabricated “evidence,” synthetic voices, and narrative laundering that spreads across platforms and into mainstream feeds. The result is not “new” hate, but hate that is faster, more convincing, and harder to police.Crucially, Synthetic Hate goes beyond diagnosis, and it lays out a practical counterstrategy of technical safeguards, platform accountability and regulation, and education and resilience, so policymakers, researchers, and practitioners can blunt AI-amplified antisemitism and hate without sacrificing democratic values.

Synthetic Hate investigates how extremists exploit artificial intelligence to modernize the world’s oldest hatred. Antisemitism - rooted in religious discrimination, medieval blood libels, Nazi propaganda, and contemporary Islamist and far-right conspiracies - has found new life through generative tools that can produce persuasive text, images, audio, and video at scale.Drawing on documented cases and controlled demonstrations, the book shows how LLMs, deepfakes, bots, and recommendation systems enable cheap, rapid, and adaptive propaganda - memes that evade moderation, fabricated “evidence,” synthetic voices, and narrative laundering that spreads across platforms and into mainstream feeds. The result is not “new” hate, but hate that is faster, more convincing, and harder to police.Crucially, Synthetic Hate goes beyond diagnosis, and it lays out a practical counterstrategy of technical safeguards, platform accountability and regulation, and education and resilience, so policymakers, researchers, and practitioners can blunt AI-amplified antisemitism and hate without sacrificing democratic values.

The internet has become a battleground for global power struggles, with nations and even terrorist organizations wielding cyber-attacks to exert control. As the absence of binding international laws and norms leaves cyberspace largely unchecked, countries are seeking to establish their Sovereign Cyber Domains (SCD) - tightly controlled cyberspaces. In this illuminating monograph, the author explores how Russia, China, Iran, and others perceive the internet as a means for the United States and its allies to maintain global dominance and influence foreign audiences, driving their pursuit of strict regulations over domestic cyber affairs and mass communication. Yet, even the United States is now susceptible to foreign cyber operations, mainly foreign influence that undermines its domestic affairs. Even International Blocs like the European Union had expressed concerns about foreign influence and privacy rights abuses, leading to regulatory initiatives like the General Data Protection Regulation, Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. As nations prioritize cybersecurity and sovereignty over free speech and convenience, the book predicts a future of increased regulation across all layers of the cyber domain, mirroring the historical emergence of the concept of sovereignty.Drawing on a combination of political science, international relations, and cyber domain practices, this monograph offers valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners, researchers, and students. By analyzing existing cyber sovereignty processes and predicting future trends, the book contributes to international relations theories, sheds light on the challenges of an unregulated cyber domain, and provides guidance for a secure and controlled digital future.

The internet has become a battleground for global power struggles, with nations and even terrorist organizations wielding cyber-attacks to exert control. As the absence of binding international laws and norms leaves cyberspace largely unchecked, countries are seeking to establish their Sovereign Cyber Domains (SCD) - tightly controlled cyberspaces. In this illuminating monograph, the author explores how Russia, China, Iran, and others perceive the internet as a means for the United States and its allies to maintain global dominance and influence foreign audiences, driving their pursuit of strict regulations over domestic cyber affairs and mass communication. Yet, even the United States is now susceptible to foreign cyber operations, mainly foreign influence that undermines its domestic affairs. Even International Blocs like the European Union had expressed concerns about foreign influence and privacy rights abuses, leading to regulatory initiatives like the General Data Protection Regulation, Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. As nations prioritize cybersecurity and sovereignty over free speech and convenience, the book predicts a future of increased regulation across all layers of the cyber domain, mirroring the historical emergence of the concept of sovereignty.Drawing on a combination of political science, international relations, and cyber domain practices, this monograph offers valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners, researchers, and students. By analyzing existing cyber sovereignty processes and predicting future trends, the book contributes to international relations theories, sheds light on the challenges of an unregulated cyber domain, and provides guidance for a secure and controlled digital future.

Das Internet ist zu einem Schlachtfeld globaler Machtkämpfe geworden – Staaten und sogar Terrororganisationen setzen Cyberangriffe ein, um Kontrolle auszuüben. Da es an verbindlichen internationalen Gesetzen und Normen mangelt, bleibt der Cyberraum weitgehend unreguliert. Infolgedessen streben Länder danach, eigene Souveräne Cyber-Domänen (SCD) zu etablieren – streng kontrollierte digitale Räume.In dieser aufschlussreichen Monografie untersucht der Autor, wie Russland, China, Iran und andere Staaten das Internet als Instrument betrachten, mit dem die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre Verbündeten ihre globale Vorherrschaft sichern und ausländische Zielgruppen beeinflussen. Diese Wahrnehmung treibt sie an, strikte Regulierungen für ihre innerstaatlichen Cyberangelegenheiten und die Massenkommunikation einzuführen.Doch selbst die Vereinigten Staaten sind mittlerweile anfällig für ausländische Cyberoperationen – insbesondere für gezielte Einflussnahme, die ihre inneren Angelegenheiten untergräbt. Auch internationale Zusammenschlüsse wie die Europäische Union haben Bedenken hinsichtlich ausländischer Einflussnahme und Datenschutzverletzungen geäußert, was zu Regulierungsinitiativen wie der Datenschutz-Grundverordnung (DSGVO), dem Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz und dem Digitale-Märkte-Gesetz geführt hat.Während Staaten zunehmend Cybersicherheit und Souveränität über Meinungsfreiheit und digitale Bequemlichkeit stellen, prognostiziert das Buch eine Zukunft mit wachsender Regulierung auf allen Ebenen des Cyberraums – ein Trend, der die historische Entwicklung des Souveränitätsbegriffs widerspiegelt.Diese Monografie verbindet Erkenntnisse aus Politikwissenschaft, internationalen Beziehungen und der Cyberpraxis und bietet wertvolle Einsichten für politische Entscheidungsträger, Fachleute, Forschende und Studierende. Durch die Analyse bestehender Prozesse der Cyber-Souveränität und die Prognose zukünftiger Entwicklungen leistet das Werk einen Beitrag zu Theorien der internationalen Beziehungen, beleuchtet die Herausforderungen eines unregulierten Cyberraums und liefert Orientierung für eine sichere und kontrollierte digitale Zukunft.