Report finds "social media platforms are playing a significant role in amplifying anti-Muslim hatred in Ireland"

A report released by Hope and Courage Collective has found that "social media platforms are playing a significant role in amplifying anti-Muslim hatred in Ireland."

The report, The Islamophobia Playbook: A Project of Hate, examines anti-Muslim incidents over two years and in 2026. It presents an in-depth case study of the role of social media in the alleged arson attack on the Al Madinah Prayer Hall on Talbot Street, Dublin.

"This raises urgent questions about how recommender systems are spreading harmful content during incidents targeting minority communities, including celebrating violence. calling for murder and damage to property," stated Hope and Courage Collective. "This content remains online."

Researchers found that a Facebook video showing the aftermath of the alleged attack was viewed more than 1.9 million times - approximately 352 times greater than the account's normal audience.

Analysis of more than 10,600 comments and emojis found that one in five contained anti-Muslim hate, support for the alleged attack, calls for further mosque burnings, violence against Muslims, or other forms of incitement.

"The findings of this research are extremely worrying," said Mark Malone, Research Lead with Hope and Courage Collective.

"The public, in particular the Muslim community, needs clarity on how Facebook's recommender systems turn attacks on places of worship into viral content that normalises this event and calls for more violence."

The research also found that discussion of the alleged mosque attack spread rapidly across X, generating more than 112,000 online mentions from 70,000 unique accounts and reaching an estimated 243 million accounts within six days.

Nearly 90 per cent of online discussion originated outside of Ireland, "highlighting the increasingly transnational nature of online anti-Muslim narratives."

"That level of international amplification should concern anyone responsible for the safety of our online spaces," Malone continued. "Ireland is now a source of content for international far-right influencers.

"Copy and paste statements from Meta about how it does not allow hate speech on its platforms do nothing to address the reality that it does. Meta also needs to specifically answer why it continues to host calls for further attacks on Mosques and calls for violence against the Muslim community.

"Fundamentally, Meta must demonstrate transparently how their systems are assessing and mitigating systemic risks created by their own recommender systems."