RIP, IAGS: How the Media Fell For a Propaganda Scam on Genocide

Just how far down the rabbit hole will the mainstream media go to pursue its narratives? The saga of the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) provides more twists and depths than even Alice discovered on her way to Wonderland.

First off, the IAGS made news this week when they declared a consensus that the war in Gaza — started by Hamas — had qualified as a genocide by Israel. Supposedly, 83% of their membership voted in favor of that conclusion. And in their haste to amplify criticism of Israel, media outlets around the world, but especially in the US, heralded this as conclusive proof for the thesis. That included citations in:

It didn’t take long for the story to fall apart, but not just on process. That’s where the exposés began, though, as some scholars objected to the release without ever being consulted about it. Longtime IAGS member and former advisory board member Sara Brown raised the first public objection to the declaration almost immediately after its publication:

“The content of the resolution and the way it was forced through speak to an embarrassing absence of professionalism,” she says. Among her qualms with the resolution are that it cites organizations that have reinterpreted the definition of genocide so that it applies to Israel, such as Amnesty International.

Emails shared with The Times of Israel show that the association’s leadership in late July said there would be a town hall discussion to discuss the Israel resolution, but backtracked days later, citing a vote by the association’s executive board.

The association also did not allow dissenting opinions to be published on its list serve, saying the list serve was not a forum for such discussions, and declined to release the names of the members who drafted the resolution, the emails show.

Brown says only 129 association members voted on the resolution out of an estimated membership of around 500. The association’s membership was informed ahead of time about the vote, but many chose not to weigh in, likely because they did not feel qualified to address the issue, Brown says.

If 83% of the vote only involved a quarter of the membership, then this is not a consensus at all. Even assuming the members voting are legitimate — a point to which we will return — then that only accounts for 107 scholars out of 500, or about 21% of its overall membership. And that doesn’t even attest to the gamed-out process that the IAGS executive board used to generate the resolution and vote, which clearly intended to produce the result it generated.

And who were the 129 members that cast ballots in this matter? Their names have not been released, but Brown also raised questions about their status as “scholars”:

In the case of the IAGS, the capture has been facilitated by a quiet lowering of standards. Once largely the domain of scholars dedicated to the study of genocide, the association has expanded its membership to include activists and artists. Diversity of perspective may sound harmless, even desirable. But in practice, it has blurred the distinction between academic expertise and political activism. When activists dominate, scholarship is reduced to camouflage.

Sara Brown was blunt: this expansion “opened the door” to exactly the sort of hijacking now on display. A resolution dressed up as a scholarly judgment was, in fact, the handiwork of a smallactivist bloc. The leadership, in her words, “had an agenda.” [fixed]

Harsh? Well, just guess who managed to wangle memberships into IAGS — at least until today. After Brown raised concerns about activist infiltration into this scholarly society, a few journalists began looking into getting their own memberships. And guess what they found?

Oh, let’s not always see the same hands … 

I have been asked by other scholars about the necessary credentials to join this esteemed group of “genocide scholars” that generated worldwide headlines because 24% of members voted that Gaza was a genocide. There are 2 key criteria: (1) be alive (2) have a valid credit card.

— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) September 3, 2025

Here’s the video. The IAGS isn’t engaged in scholarship — it’s engaged in intellectual fraud. Their hatred for Israel (the 120 who voted for this junk resolution, 72% of members simply did not vote) has stripped them of any credibility. ENDpic.twitter.com/Y2vlIjZBrx

— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) September 2, 2025

Emperor Palpatine is also a member of the International Association of Genocide Scholars 👏 https://t.co/dJgA6XheBT pic.twitter.com/VwDWbLuALp

— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) September 3, 2025

Palpatine and Hitler, eh? What a remarkably credible organization! Or perhaps a former organization. After having its machinations exposed online, the IAGS decided to ‘disappear’ the evidence of their fraud:

Update:

R.I.P. International Association of Genocide Scholars https://t.co/nBoHeJDMLn

— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) September 3, 2025

Unwilling to abide by the open membership model they once touted, the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) has tanked its own website.

Users can no longer see who the members are, individual member pages have been deactivated, and its X account has been taken down. This includes myself, Cookie Monster, Emperor Palpatine, and Palestinian Hitler, among others.

Two outstanding issues remain:

1. Will there be any accountability for the lies this fake association spread?

2. Who do I speak to about my $30 refund?

Will the media outlets that rushed to amplify this fraud correct the record? As of 12:40 ET today, none of them has done so. All of the stories linked above were found on searches of their websites and the citations still active. Perhaps these outlets will quietly remove the citations in the hours and days ahead, but even if they do, the stories fulfilled their narrative purposes. They misled readers and viewers into thinking that the IAGS was a disinterested scholarly institution, rather than an Internet forum hijacked by radical activists and, well, Palestinian Hitlers, which is strangely apropos in the effort to demonize and annihilate Jews. 

This exposes a broader fraud perpetrated by the Protection Racket Media — the “experts” fraud. Rather than report the news, and especially rather than check their sources, media outlets rush to find “experts” to validate preferred narratives and package it as “news” to lightly engaged consumers. They then wonder why no one trusts “experts,” and especially why no one trusts the media. They won’t correct this record, though, because they act with impunity rather than accountability, and will until they suffer so much market damage that their investors toss them on the scrap heap. 

If we thought our job in pushing back against the Academia/media/Democrat censorship complex was over with the election, think again. This is going to be a long fight. If you want to join the conversation in the comments — and support independent platforms — why not join our VIP Membership program? Choose VIP to support Hot Air and access our premium content, VIP Gold to extend your access to all Townhall Media platforms and participate in this show, or VIP Platinum to get access to even more content and discounts on merchandise. Use the promo code FIGHT to join or to upgrade your existing membership level today, and get 60% off!