Mistrust, censorship and surveillance: Pro-Palestine students wrestle with how to mobilise in the modern age

Across the country, students have been setting up pro-Palestine encampments to protest against the war on Gaza, demanding that universities are transparent about their investments and that they divest from companies that have involvement in, or enable Israel’s continued occupation of Palestinian territories. 

Our journalist Manasa Narayanan visited the camps in London, Manchester and Leeds to understand the risks and realities of conducting public protests in our new media landscape. 

For our first Public Hearing, we present student voices raising issues of online hate and harassment, media mistrust, platform censorship and fears of surveillance.

1/ Mistrust of traditional media

Students across the various UK encampments are wary of the press, a mistrust driven by what they see as unfair representations of the movement.

2/ Experiences of censorship on social media

Students have largely limited contact with much of the UK press, using social media as their main medium of communication. This is despite issues of censorship of pro-Palestinian voices by the likes of Facebook and Instagram. 

The students refer to shadow banning, an umbrella term for various forms of censorship, particularly on Instagram, which sees a user’s story or post being blocked, demoted or having restricted reach.

3/ Hate speech on different platforms

Across the camps, experiences of hate and harassment vary but students point out that the volume of hate differs depending on the platform.

4/ Social media as an engine for alternative voices

The mistrust in traditional media not only stems from the student’s dissatisfaction with reporting around the university encampments, but also with what they see as larger failures of the press in reporting about the war on Gaza itself.

5/ Use of personal social media

Students had different uses for social media, with some continuing to engage politically on their personal accounts alongside the encampment and coalition profiles. Several avoided posting on personal handles for fear of how they would be perceived by others in their social network and even worries around how their views might impact friendships.

6/ Fears of university surveillance

Students are cautious about universities taking action against them, and potential repercussions to their education. Many wear masks to protect their identities and some avoid connecting to university wi-fi.

Produced by: Manasa Narayanan

Edited and mixed by: Manasa Narayanan

Design by: Isabel Sunderland

Disclaimer: In Public Hearing, we collate voices, stories and experiences from individual members of the community on issues that are most important to them. These excerpts include perceptions and opinions that are personal to the individual and do not reflect the views of the Citizens as an organisation. 

In order to manage volume and repetition of content, we are unable to feature all submissions that we receive. Any submissions that explicitly promote hate, harassment or violence towards any individuals or group will not be published. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity, and names of individuals or organisations may be removed for reasons of privacy, safety, fairness or defamation.

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