14. Henry Ford Became the Greatest Advocate of a Great Anti-Semitic Forgery
In Germany, the Nazis cited The Protocols of the Elders of Zion for propaganda purposes, and made them assigned readings for schoolchildren after they came to power. In America, Henry Ford paid to print and distribute half a million copies, titled The International Jew: The World’s Problem. As with many claims that reinforce preexisting prejudices and buttress longstanding beliefs, truth was immaterial. In 1921, The Times of London conclusively demonstrated that the Protocols were a forgery. The evidence was widely reprinted around the world.
It made no difference in right-wing circles, where the Protocols’ debunking was dismissed as “fake news” from the Jewish-controlled media. Today, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion are no longer acceptable fare in the Western mainstream. However, they continue to circulate within anti-Semitic circles, white nationalist groups, the alt-right, etc. Since the 2016 elections, their circulation has seen an uptick America. Outside the West, the Protocols continue to be reprinted, recycled, and quoted, with little challenge to their authenticity.