Max Blumenthal was born into a deeply political Jewish family. His father, Sidney Blumenthal, was a legendary figure in Washington political circles, a senior adviser to President Bill Clinton and later to Hillary Clinton. He was considered an old-school liberal Democrat, and at least when he was young, his son Max was not far from him ideologically. That all ended long ago.
Over the years, Max moved further and further left, especially on foreign policy and particularly on issues involving Israel. In 2013, Sidney Blumenthal found himself publicly battling his son’s critics over Max’s book Goliath, which compared Israel’s actions to those of the Nazi regime. This was a decade before October 7.
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They and dozens more like them have hundreds of millions of followers around the world. They represent an unprecedented shift in attitudes toward Israel, one that currently does not appear to be stoppable
(Illustration: Levia Tushinsky)
In the years since, Blumenthal Jr. has become increasingly radical. He founded an independent news website called The Grayzone, dedicated to absolute opposition to any U.S. military intervention around the world and filled with a wide range of views about Israel, all of which essentially amount to the same position: He compares Israel to apartheid-era South Africa and the American South under racist Jim Crow laws, and argues that Israeli society is steeped in racist and fascist culture while its leaders use the memory of the Holocaust to justify violence against Palestinians.
After October 7, Blumenthal claimed that Israel deliberately fabricated and exaggerated reports of Hamas’ atrocities in order to “gain legitimacy for genocide.” He argues that Zionism is a form of cult that both feeds on and requires antisemitism in order to survive politically and financially. Last month, after a devastating earthquake in Venezuela, he posted that Israel was “infiltrating Venezuela under the guise of a humanitarian aid delegation.”
It was therefore no surprise when Blumenthal traveled to Iran earlier this month at the invitation of the regime and attended in his capacity as a journalist to cover the funeral of Ali Khamenei. When he returned to the United States, he was detained for questioning at Washington’s airport and his phone was confiscated.
Blumenthal was not alone in Tehran. The regime officially invited around 400 bloggers and influencers from around the world, as well as dozens of independent journalists, creating a politically diverse mosaic ranging from the far right to the far left, with at least one issue shared by all of them: a deep hatred of Israel.
Together, they and dozens more like them have hundreds of millions of followers around the world. They represent an unprecedented shift in attitudes toward Israel, one that currently does not appear to be stoppable. And it does not appear that anyone is even trying.
Almost all of influencer culture on social media is based on a business model. These are people who, from a very young age, developed a cynical view of humanity that increasingly appears justified. They exist in every area of life — food, fashion, alternative medicine or rabbit breeding — and there are always people who can be persuaded to spend money to keep the business going.
But even within this enormous sphere there are issues that cut across audiences, topics that only need to be pressed whenever the business starts weakening and the masses return to using their credit cards. Post-October 7 Israel is one such issue.
The boundaries between legitimate criticism of a government’s actions and antisemitism were crossed long ago. A significant number of these people do not even know what they are talking about, but they do know that “the Jews are responsible for everything,” and from there the road to big money is paved.
The eclectic nature of this group explains the depth of the crisis from Israel’s perspective. It includes Israel-haters of every kind.
The case of Max Blumenthal is somewhat unusual because he has been a genuine ideologue for many years. He works as a journalist and has a clear political agenda. Also present at the funeral was Christopher Helali, a founding member of the American Communist Party who previously held a minor elected position in Vermont and now lives in Moscow. He too is ideologically focused.
Alongside them were people who shed tears for Khamenei simply because they are extremely, extremely radical in every direction and on every issue.
Calla Walsh, an anti-Zionist activist who exists on the margins even of the farthest reaches of the left
For example, there is Calla Walsh, just 22 years old, an anti-Zionist activist who exists on the margins even of the farthest reaches of the left. She is the daughter of Harvard University professors and, by age 16, had already become a key figure in Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign and was viewed as a future star of the Democratic Party’s liberal wing.
Walsh underwent radicalization before finishing high school, and a month after October 7 she was accused of attempting to break into, sabotage and vandalize a factory owned by Israeli defense company Elbit Systems in New Hampshire. She was sentenced to 60 days in prison.
After her release, Walsh was invited to Cuba and then to Iran, where she underwent an accelerated process of indoctrination. She moved to Beirut and from there regularly broadcasts and appears as a commentator on Iran’s state television channel.
In December 2025, she was nominated for the title of “Antisemite of the Year” by the American organization StopAntisemitism (she lost to Tucker Carlson). From Khamenei’s funeral, Walsh posted videos praising the ayatollah, whom she described as “the greatest anti-imperialist leader of our time.”
Tucker Carlson. 'Antisemite of the Year'
(Photo: John Locher, AP)
On the other side of the political spectrum at the funeral was Jackson Hinkle, a far-right activist and co-founder of a fringe political movement known as "MAGA Communism," which combines left-wing economic populism with social conservatism, Trumpism and nationalism.
Hinkle's partner in the movement is 30-year-old Haz Al-Din, whose real name is Adam Tahir and who officially comes from the communist left. Together, they are a striking illustration of the old saying that politics can become parody: They admire both Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin while also championing the Palestinian cause.
Jackson Hinkle, a far-right activist
(Photo: ALBERTO E. RODRIGUEZ, Getty Images via AFP)
Hinkle was filmed in Tehran leading chants of "Death to America" and "Death to Zionism." In interviews with Iranian and Russian state television, he said he was proud to be there to expose what he called "the lies of the West."
It is easy to dismiss him as a fringe eccentric. But he has millions of followers, and many ideas now considered mainstream once belonged on the political fringe.
Another prominent figure in this ultra-radical ecosystem is Candace Owens, who also has millions of followers.
Owens openly promotes antisemitic rhetoric while also, paradoxically, defending white supremacists despite being Black herself. She has claimed that a "Jewish gang" controls Hollywood, defended Kanye West's antisemitic statements and promoted historic blood libels, including the false claim that Jews murdered the Russian czar and his family as part of a religious ritual.
Another prominent figure in this ultra-radical ecosystem. Candace Owens
(Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AP)
She operates primarily on YouTube and X, bringing antisemitic ideas to a broad conservative audience.
Her YouTube account was temporarily suspended in September 2024 after she interviewed Kanye West and expressed explicitly antisemitic views. Last year, Australia's High Court upheld the government's decision to revoke her visa and bar her from entering the country for a planned speaking tour, ruling that she posed a risk of incitement.
Lucas Gage has become one of the most viral antisemitic figures on X since October 7.
His posts focused almost exclusively on attacking Jews. He repeatedly called for a complete boycott of Jewish-owned businesses and promoted the Nazi "Great Replacement" conspiracy theory, which claims Jews are attempting to replace white populations with nonwhite immigrants.
Gage was suspended from X several times before announcing in March that he was "leaving antisemitism behind."
Last month he appeared on the popular Orthodox podcast Inspiration for the Nation, saying his obsession with hating Jews had been "like a disease."
Time will tell.
Then there is Nick Fuentes — perhaps America's best-known Hitler admirer, who famously dined with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. After being banned from X for years, he was reinstated by Elon Musk in 2024 and now operates an active account with more than one million followers.
Nick Fuentes, perhaps America's best-known Hitler admirer
(Photo: Jacquelyn Martin, AP)
Jake Shields, the former UFC fighter, has reinvented himself as an online extremist with hundreds of thousands of followers on X. He has largely avoided permanent suspensions while using his platform to spread conspiracy theories alleging Jewish involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks, claiming Jews control the U.S. government and promoting content portraying Judaism as a racist and dangerous religion.
Alongside these figures, an entire online community has flourished consisting largely of young men for whom Israel is not actually the central issue. Most are very young and have little understanding of what they are talking about. What they do understand is that Israel has become a profitable button to push.
Braden Peters, better known online as Clavicular, who drew widespread attention during a brief visit to Israel last week, is a perfect example.
Braden Peters, better known online as Clavicular, who drew widespread attention during a brief visit to Israel last week
The 20-year-old streamer says his goal in life is to achieve "the perfect male beauty" — which, not coincidentally, means white male beauty.
More specifically, his ideal is actor Matt Bomer, best known for the television series White Collar and for his Golden Globe-winning performance in The Normal Heart.
Peters has devoted his very young — and, critics would say, very misguided — life to becoming Matt Bomer, an openly gay actor whose political views Peters would almost certainly despise, assuming he knew what they were.
Clavicular is the online name Peters chose for himself.
His collarbone measures 46 centimeters (18 inches). He is 1.98 meters (6-foot-6) tall, weighs 84 kilograms (185 pounds) and boasts a midface ratio of 1.07 — calculated by dividing the distance from the pupil to the mouth by the distance between the pupils.
Most people have never measured such things.
Peters has.
Based on those numbers, he has concluded that he is already a very handsome man.
Just not quite as handsome as Matt Bomer.
He believes he is one jaw surgery away from getting there.
Since age 14, Peters has injected and ingested hormones and other substances in pursuit of that goal.
He belongs to the online "looksmaxxing" community, whose followers believe maximizing male physical attractiveness is the key to success in life.
That attractiveness, however, is largely reserved for white men. When a Black creator attempted to produce looksmaxxing content, he was immediately met with racist abuse.
Looksmaxxers embrace a nihilistic worldview in which the universe is a closed club of aggressive men battling for status and only a select few survive.
Over the past year, Peters' videos have spread across nearly every social media platform.
At just 20 years old, he earns more than $100,000 a month streaming on Kick, a platform that allows creators to monetize their content while giving them broad freedom over what they say.
About 10,000 people regularly watch Clavicular's livestreams simultaneously, and some viewers are even paid by Kick to create short clips from his broadcasts.
Peters also enjoys using racial slurs, though he told The New York Times that "of course it's not racist. It's just a fun word to say."
The success of creators like Peters comes at a time when the U.S. government — and especially the secretary of defense — has become obsessed with reinforcing what it sees as the superior status of the white male.
The X account of the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense recently posted a photo of a smiling soldier with the caption: "Low cortisol. Locked in. Lethalitymaxxing."
Last week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered testosterone testing for all U.S. service members over the age of 30.
Clavicular, then, did not emerge in a vacuum. He is primarily a product of a digital culture that rewards young men who present themselves as disrupting a status quo they believe expected them to become compliant, feminized men.
So how does Peters connect to Israel and antisemitism?
The answer is fairly simple.
Like every other niche, this one has its own social circle, and its biggest stars inevitably end up spending time together.
Peters partied at a Miami nightclub with Nick Fuentes — an antisemite, neo-Nazi and figure with ties to the White House — and with Andrew Tate, the misogynist and racist followed on X by Vice President JD Vance.
Together, the trio sang Kanye West's "Heil Hitler," while other partygoers responded with Nazi salutes.
Even so, Peters' visit to Israel should not have come as a surprise.
He does not believe he is antisemitic or racist. He insists the only thing motivating him is beauty.
Appearing on the conservative podcast The Michael Knowles Show, Peters said that if the 2028 presidential election were between Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Vice President JD Vance, he would vote for Newsom because he preferred the way he looked.
Examples of power. Trump and Putin
(Photo: Gavriil Grigorov, via REUTERS)
"That wasn't a political statement at all," Peters later explained. "I was just saying Vance is fat."
Before traveling to Israel, Peters said he had met with several prominent Jewish nightclub owners in Miami to discuss the Kanye West song incident and promised that "there won't be any more politics."
Or at least not until politics once again becomes financially worthwhile.
This broader ecosystem is generally known as the manosphere — a loose network of online communities, influencers, forums and content centered on male identity.
It is a multimillion-dollar industry spanning everything from harmless fitness and bodybuilding content to dangerous extremist ideologies.
The common denominator across much of the manosphere is misogyny, racism, more misogyny and antisemitism never far behind.
The movement's biggest star is 39-year-old Andrew Tate, who not only turned misogyny into a highly profitable business but also helped bring it into the mainstream.
He faces dozens of criminal charges across Europe, including rape and human trafficking for sexual exploitation. Far from damaging his popularity, the allegations have only strengthened his standing among millions of followers.
To his supporters, Tate is simply exercising the privileges of being a man while serving as yet another victim of what they call the "woke" establishment.
The fact that Tate also enjoys a large following within Israel's own manosphere should not be surprising.
The connection between parts of Israel's right and the global far right is hardly new. It is often framed as part of a worldwide struggle against progressivism, but it repeatedly circles back to antisemitism.
The Tate brothers, who remain highly important to Trump's political base
(Photo: DANIEL MIHAILESCU, AFP)
"We can't be antisemitic if we support Israel" has become an especially effective form of gaslighting.
Tate and his brother Tristan were arrested this week in Miami following an urgent extradition request from Britain, where prosecutors filed 38 new criminal charges against them in addition to the 21 charges they were already facing.
Andrew Tate is charged with seven additional counts of rape, along with serious allegations including human trafficking for sexual exploitation, assault and possession of child sexual abuse material and extreme pornography.
Tristan Tate faces two counts of rape, one count of sexual assault and three counts of managing or assisting human trafficking.
The Tate brothers, who hold dual U.S. and British citizenship, had spent an extended period under travel restrictions and house arrest in Romania while facing separate human trafficking and rape charges there.
In early 2025, a Romanian court unexpectedly lifted the travel restrictions. The brothers claimed the White House had intervened on their behalf, though the White House denied the allegation.
They promptly flew by private jet to Florida.
Since then, they had been living in Miami, which has increasingly become both the spiritual and physical hub of the global far right, a culture revolving around women, fitness and wealth.
The brothers continued building their lucrative online empire and expanding their following until their arrest several days ago.
Their attorney, Joseph McBride, said the brothers are "innocent" and described the case as "political hit."
He added that "America does not do Britain's political dirty work" and said he had reason to believe the Trump Justice Department would try to prevent their extradition.
The Tate brothers remain highly important to Trump's political base.
Either way, their legal troubles are unlikely to weaken the broader movement.
Its various factions may focus on different causes, but they all understand that hating Israel has become a highly profitable business — even if some of them could not find Israel on a map.
And that is unlikely to change as long as no one offers their millions of followers an alternative narrative.