2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer in an August 31, 2020 TikTok. Freihofer made a Holocaust joke in the since-deleted post. Image by Twitter

By PJ Grisar August 31, 2020

TikTok, whatever your feelings on the security of its Chinese ownership, is a hub for creative content — much of it Jewish. But like any other platform, it’s also vulnerable to the contributions of the crass, misguided and offensively unfunny.

On Monday, 2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer, a popular TikTok user with nearly 3 million followers, made a painfully hacky Holocaust joke in a since-deleted post.

2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer, a popular TikTok influencer with nearly 3 mil followers, posted a joke about the holocaust.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“If you get offended, get the fuck out because it’s a joke,” he says.

May be contrary to Army’s “Think, Type, Post” social media policy, but hey what do I know pic.twitter.com/TpkLr1xhPt

— Paul Szoldra (@PaulSzoldra) August 31, 2020

“Reason 1 million why I will never be verified: dark jokes,” Freihofer, an officer in the U.S. Army, said in the video, before asking what a Jewish person’s favorite “Pokemon” character would be.

“Ash,” he answers with a smirk before laughing like the world’s most punchable dolphin. “If you get offended, get the f—k out because it’s a joke,” he concludes. “Don’t be a p—y.”

Given the spate of young TikTokers roleplaying cremated Shoah victims and the general trend of antisemitism on the app, this was the last thing we needed.

But the good news is there may be consequences for once.

A spokesman for the 18th Airborne Corps, where Freihofer serves as a soldier, told Task & Purpose, “The command is taking immediate action looking into this,” adding that several conversations had been already had at the “highest levels” of the corps.

The post is a likely violation of the Army’s “Think, Type, Post” policy, which insists that officers only send out messages that “demonstrate dignity and respect for self and others.”

Thankfully it’s not all bad news on TikTok. If you need a palate cleanser from lazy antisemitism, you can always watch this young woman’s videos of shtetl life. We’d say they should be required viewing for Lt. Freihofer, but, let’s be honest, his TikTok privileges should be revoked — at the very least.

PJ Grisar is the Forward’s culture reporter. He can be reached at [email protected].

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount