ADL: Instagram Left 93% of Reported Extremist Content Online

A new report released today (Wednesday) by the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism, in partnership with JLens, finds a troubling spread of antisemitism and extremism on Instagram. According to the report, 93% of the extremist content reported to Instagram was not removed.

The report was published ahead of an upcoming Meta shareholder vote. It states that changes to Meta's content moderation, and the lack of sufficient content oversight policies, "could turn Instagram into a hub for hate",

According to the report, Instagram removed only 7% of the hate and extremist content flagged by researchers, underscoring a systemic failure to protect users on one of the world's most widely used social media platforms.

Between January and February 2026, researchers at the ADL Center on Extremism conducted systematic enforcement tests. They reported 253 violating content items through Instagram's reporting system. Of the 150 accounts reported and 103 posts reported, linked to white supremacist networks, designated foreign terrorist organizations, and sellers of Nazi memorabilia, Instagram removed only 11 accounts and 8 posts.

Key findings: 93% of the reported extremist and hate content was not removed; 105 accounts tied to white supremacist activist Nick Fuentes's Groyper network were identified, with more than 1.4 million cumulative followers. These accounts routinely posted antisemitic conspiracy theories, Holocaust denial, and pro-Hitler content.

Researchers also found more than 340,000 followers across accounts directly or indirectly connected to U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organizations, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. In addition, more than 3.2 million views were recorded on content from a single extremist-merchandise vendor selling apparel with Nazi symbols, including Sonnenrad Totenkopf and SS insignia.