‘We’ve not done well on the propaganda war’: PM attributes drop in support from Israel in US to social media disinformation

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is asked about polls showing rapidly collapsing support for Israel among Americans, particularly the younger generations, since the war in Gaza began, and attributes it to social media and to effective disinformation campaigns waged by states he does not name.

Speaking to CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” the premier touts the many steps Israel has taken to get civilians in Gaza and Lebanon out of harm’s way amid the war, but says campaigns against the Jewish state on social media have been very effective.

According to a Pew survey published last month, 60% of U.S. adults viewed Israel unfavorably, up nearly 20 points in four years. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the rise of social media is a major reason for this decline. https://t.co/QP4ESNtjGq pic.twitter.com/miCEwFYLX3

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) May 10, 2026

Sixty percent of US adults have an unfavorable view of Israel, and 59% have little or no confidence in Netanyahu to do the right thing regarding world affairs, according to a Pew survey conducted in March. Both percentages were up seven percentage points from a year earlier.

Netanyahu says deteriorating support for Israel in the United States “correlates almost 100% with the geometric rise of social media.”

He says several countries, which he does not identify, have “basically manipulated” social media in a way that “hurt us badly,” though he personally does not believe in censorship of social networks.

“Israel is besieged on the media front, on the propaganda front, and we’ve not done well on the propaganda war,” he concedes. “We have to fight back against these lies, this propaganda, with the only weapon we have. It’s the truth. I’m trying to do that now and will try to do that in a much greater effort because we’ve left the battlefield to our enemies.”