Act.IL (also Act-IL) is a

social networking service A social networking service or SNS (sometimes called a social networking site) is an online platform which people use to build social networks or social relationships with other people who share similar personal or career content, interests, act ...

used by supporters of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

to oppose online "anti-Israel content" such as the

boycott, divestment and sanctions movement Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) is a Palestinian-led movement promoting boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel. Its objective is to pressure Israel to meet what the BDS movement describes as Israel's obligations u ...

(BDS). Its activities have been referred to as "an online propaganda campaign" and "a virtual situation room of pro-Israel experts". Act.IL directs its users to "missions" to like, comment on, and share pro-Israel material on social media. It also asks users to flag, report, and respond to unfair criticisms of Israel. Users are guided on how to respond, which might entail writing a reply using the provided talking points, or sharing or upvoting an allied comment. The app also provides users with ready-made

meme A meme ( ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural i ...

s promoting Israel's perspective for them to share. By completing missions users earn points, unlock badges, and have their scores displayed on leaderboards. Act-IL is a joint project of the private Israeli university

IDC Herzliya Reichman University ( he, אוניברסיטת רייכמן) is Israel's only private university, located in Herzliya, Tel Aviv District. It was founded in 1994 as the IDC Herzliya private college, before being rebranded in 2021. It receives no ...

and the US-based

Israeli-American Council The Israeli-American Council (IAC; he, ארגון הקהילה הישראלית-אמריקאית) is an American nonprofit organization to represent and serve the approximately 125,000 Israeli-Americans. Its mission is to preserve and strengthe ...

. The

Maccabee Task Force The Maccabee Task Force (MTF) is a fundraising group oriented against Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS), funded largely by Sheldon Adelson as of 2017. History MTF was founded in 2015. Sheldon Adelson expressed interest in formatio ...

, one of

Sheldon Adelson Sheldon Gary Adelson (; August 4, 1933 – January 11, 2021) was an American businessman, investor, political donor and philanthropist. He was the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corporation, which owns th ...

's foundations, is a major funder of Act.IL. The organization behind Act.IL is staffed by former intelligence officers and has a collegial relationship with the

Israeli Intelligence Community The Israeli Intelligence Community is made up of Aman (military intelligence), Mossad (overseas intelligence) and Shabak (internal security). Current agencies * Military Intelligence Directorate (Aman): the supreme military-intelligence bran ...

. It has a close relationship with Israel's

Ministry of Strategic Affairs The Ministry of Strategic Affairs and Public Diplomacy ( he, המשרד לנושאים אסטרטגיים, ''HaMisrad LeNos'im Astrategi'im'') is an Israeli government ministry responsible for leading the campaign of expanding the Abraham Accords ...

which combats the BDS movement which it views as a threat. According to

Mondoweiss ''Mondoweiss'' is a news website that began as a general-interest blog written by Philip Weiss on ''The New York Observer'' website. It subsequently developed into a broader collaborative venture after fellow journalist Adam Horowitz joined it ...

, an email sent in March 2022 to the app's users announced that the app will be shut down but that users should continue to interact with Act.IL's content on its other social media platforms.

References

{{reflist Mobile social software Non-governmental organizations involved in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict Propaganda in Israel Internet manipulation and propaganda 2017 software

See also

References