From November 18–20, 2025, the international conference "Confronting Holocaust Distortion in the Digital Era" will bring together scholars, educators, and museum professionals to examine the growing phenomenon of Holocaust distortion in digital spaces.
- Date, venue: 18–20 November 2025 (Tuesday–Thursday ), POLIN Museum
- The language of the conference: English, debates in Polish with simultaneous translation into English
- Recordings of the conference are available upon request to anyone interested. Please request the recording at [email protected]
- More information: [email protected]
Day one focuses on Polish perspectives, scientific approaches, and a roundtable on the evolution of Holocaust discourse in Poland. Subsequent sessions explore manipulation, education, political rhetoric, and ethical challenges posed by artificial intelligence. Special attention will be given to the role of social media, algorithms, and AI tools in spreading false narratives.
The program includes lectures, panel discussions, roundtables, and public events. The conference aims not only to diagnose the problem but also to develop strategies to counter digital forms of Holocaust denial and distortion.
Program
DAY 1 (November 18, 2025)
- 14:30 – 15:45 Conference Opening
- Polish perspectives: Online and in-person antisemitism
- Chair: Zachary Mazur (POLIN Museum)
- Piotr Kwapisiewicz (Czulent Foundation), “How much of the current rise in antisemitism includes Holocaust themes?”
- Witold Wrzosiński (Jewish Community of Poland), Vandalism in Jewish cemeteries and its connection to historical and current Events”
- Julia Chimiak (POLIN Museum), “Responses to Educational programs at POLIN Museum”
- 15:45 – 16:00 Coffee Break
- 16:00 – 17:30 Panel 1: Scientific approaches to the problem
- Chair: Rob Rozett (Yad Vashem)
- Stefan Leicht (Leibniz Institute for Contemporary History), “Analysing and Mapping Holocaust Diaries to Confront (AI-generated) Holocaust Distortion”
- Stefania Zezza (University of Rome Tor Vergata), “The Language of Distortion: Sociolinguistic Approaches to Holocaust Memory in Digital Discourse”
- Oana Serban (University of Bucharest), “Biopolitics 2.0: Analyzing Holocaust Distortion and Denial in Romanian Digital Environments. A Case Study on Corrective Justice Mechanisms on Facebook: The Digital Heritage of "Viral" Cancel Culture”
- 17:30 – 18:00 Coffee Break
- 18:00 – 19:30 Roundtable Discussion: “Confronting the Truth: Neighbors and the Evolution of Polish Holocaust Discourse”
- Moderator: Piotr Forecki (Adam Mickiewicz University)
- Agnieszka Haska (Center for Holocaust Research, Polish Academy of Sciences)
- Krzysztof Persak (POLIN Museum; Institute of Political Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences)
- Joanna Tokarska-Bakir (Institute of Slavic Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences)
DAY 2 (November 19, 2025)
- 10:00 – 11:30 – Keynote Address
- Lev Topor (Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo), “Digital Cloaks and Algorithmic Shadows: Online Holocaust Denial in the Age of AI”
- 11:30 – 12:00 Coffee Break
- 12:00 – 13.30 Panel 2: Manipulation & Education
- Chair: Andrea Löw (Leibniz Institute for Contemporary History)
- Stephanie Share (University of Haifa), “From Denial to Distortion: Understanding and Combating Holocaust Manipulation in the Digital Age”
- Borbala Klacsmann (Eötvös Loránd University), “Holokauszttörténetek: Education, popular history, commemoration via social media”
- Marina Bantiou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), “Engaging Young Learners with Holocaust History in the Digital Age: Designing Educational Tools Based on the Jewish Community of Corfu”
- 13:30 – 14:30 Lunch
- 14:30 – 16:00 Panel 3: Distortion & Politics
- Chair: Antony Polonsky (POLIN Museum/Brandeis University)
- Idit Gil (The Open University of Israel), “Weaponizing Holocaust Memory: Political Rhetoric and Historical Distortion in the Digital Era”
- Gisela Fistein & Bruno Garbari (Holocaust Museum of Buenos Aires), “Confronting Holocaust myths and memory gaps in Argentina”
- Yuang Marcus Liu (King’s College London), “Online Chinese Holocaust Distortion Behind the Firewall”
- 16:00 – 16:30 Coffee break
- 16:30 – 18:00 Panel 4: Artificial “Intelligence” & Ethics
- Chair: Hannah Randall (University of Huddersfield)
- Katayoun Matloubi (University of Connecticut), “AI, Translation, and Holocaust Memory Distortion”
- Stephanie Taylor (Gratz College), “Likes, Lies, and Lessons: Holocaust Testimony in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”
- Kathryn Huether (University of California, Los Angeles), “Digital Preservation or Digital Erosion? The Ethics of Representing Anne Frank in AI”
- 18:00 – 18:30
- 18:30 – 20:00 Public Event: “Holocaust Distortion: Media’s New Challenge”
- Moderator: Michał Okoński (Tygodnik Powszechny)
- Brygida Grysiak (TVN24)
- Tomasz Terlikowski (Radio RMF FM)
- Roman Imielski (Gazeta Wyborcza)
- Tadeusz Kononiuk (University of Warsaw)
DAY 3 (November 20, 2025)
- 10:00 – 11:30 Panel 5: The View from USHMM
- Chair: Agnieszka Haska (Center for Holocaust Research, Polish Academy of Sciences)
- Robert M. Ehrenreich, Sarah Lumbard (USHMM), “Recognizing and Combating Holocaust Distortion in Generative AI: The Holocaust Encyclopedia”
- Luke Ryder (USHMM), “Building Audience-Centered Digital Resources on the Holocaust: Experiencing History”
- Andrea Bertrand (USHMM), “Initiative on Holocaust Denial and Antisemitism, Confronting Holocaust Distortion in Iran through Social Media: The Sardari Project”
- William Mattingly (University of Kentucky, USHMM), “Using AI to Improve the Accessibility of Digital Collections: A Case Study for Processing Pipelines”
- 11:30 – 12:00 Coffee Break
- 12.00 – 13.30 Panel 6: Global Perspectives
- Chair: Andrzej Żbikowski (Jewish Historical Institute)
- Cynthia Seton-Rogers (University of Texas, Dallas), “Digital Distortion: American Antisemitism, Holocaust Memory, and the Role of Social Media and AI.”
- Sharon Geva (Kibbutzim College), “Women’s History and Holocaust Memory in the Digital Age: A Wikipedia Case Study”
- K.C. Jena (National Archives of India), Rajesh Prasad (University of Delhi), “Reframing Holocaust Memory in the Digital Age: An Indian–Global Comparative Intervention
Steering committee:
- Jordanna Gessler (Holocaust Museum LA)
- Dr. Agnieszka Haska (Polish Center for Holocaust Research)
- Prof. Andrea Löw (Leibniz Institute of Contemporary History)
- Dr. Zachary Mazur (POLIN Museum)
- Prof. Antony Polonsky (Brandeis University)
- Hannah Randall (Holocaust Centre North, University of Huddersfield)
- Dr. Robert Rozett (Yad Vashem)
- Dr. Michał Trębacz (Jewish Historical Institute)
Partners:
The conference is organized within the Global Education Outreach Program.
The conference is made possible with support from Taube Philanthropies, William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation, Libitzky Family Foundation and the Association of the Jewish Historical Institute of Poland.
The conference is made possible thanks to the support of the European Association for Jewish Studies.
International conference "Confronting Holocaust Distortion in the Digital Era"
18.11.2025 - 20.11.2025
POLIN Museum
