Why are social media users blocking celebrities over Israel’s Gaza war?

How the Met Gala triggered a social media #Blockout2024 — a digital guillotine — against celebrities’ silence on Gaza.

The growing protest efforts against Israel’s war on Gaza have now spawned a cyberspace movement that has erupted in the past few days, targeting celebrities who are seen as being insensitive towards, or even supportive of, the death and destruction in the Palestinian enclave.

The campaign that took off after the Met Gala on May 6 has earned the names: Blockout 2024, celebrity block list and digitine. The idea is to  block famous celebrities on social media networks such as Instagram, X and TikTok.

But what’s it all about, why are parallels to the French Revolution coming up, does blocking a celebrity hurt them, and is the campaign seeing any impact?

The Blockout 2024 is an online movement where social media users are carrying out a digital boycott of famous celebrities ranging from Hollywood actors to social media influencers for their silence on Israel’s war on Gaza, or in some cases, their purported support for the war.

Various TikTok, Instagram and X users have begun circulating lists of celebrities and their businesses to block.