The war is also being fought on social networks, between rumors, manipulated videos, and content generated by artificial intelligence. Americans and Iranians are creating scenarios inspired by video games, Hollywood, or cartoons to influence public opinion.
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/2026/03/16/propagandet-69b7a42dafb28491590689.jpg "With American and Iranian propaganda, the war in the Middle East turns into entertainment.")
The war in Iran entered its third week on Monday, March 19. Alongside bombings and drone attacks, it also sparks an intense battle of images and narratives. Propaganda has always been present, but this conflict is flooded with millions of images and videos, including a deluge of AI-generated content.
According to a specialized institute mentioned in Les Échos, 30 to 40% of the content related to this war is created by AI. This results in imaginary scenes of panic in Tel Aviv, fake explosions in Dubai. In this world of fakes and manipulation, the weekend was marked by rumors of the death of Benjamin Netanyahu, which spread on Network X. The Israeli Prime Minister responded on Sunday, March 15 by staging himself at a café. “They told me you were dead!” a person filming told him. “I would die for a coffee, but I’m fine,” Netanyahu replied, showing his hand to the camera to address concerns about his health, partly based on a video showing him with six fingers. The message also included words of caution for the people of Israel.
From an American perspective, reality merges with fiction in the communication from the White House. They are known to play with internet codes, and their official account creates montages using video game themes. The military operation is portrayed as a game. You become a character from GTA who hits targets or play Wii, baseball, or basketball, and hitting the enemy earns you points. The war, completely dehumanized, becomes entertainment, interspersed with images of actual strikes. Washington also relies on Hollywood. The epic nature of the operation is sold through heroic figures from American blockbusters: from Braveheart to Tom Cruise, including Star Wars and Superman.
War in the Middle East: the official White House account broadcasts videos of American strikes in Iran with a montage inspired by GTA. pic.twitter.com/cZhb9aNoxH
The Iranian regime is not left behind. Aside from state television showing what they want of the war, Iran has released animated short films, slick productions that adopt Western codes.
Iran trolls Trump with Lego propaganda video that mocks Epstein ties
The video released by the Iranian regime takes a swipe at Trump over the Jeffrey Epstein files scandal that has dogged his administration pic.twitter.com/l7FUIWFh85
Using the Lego universe, they stage the election of the new Supreme Leader or recreate the death of Ali Khamenei in a film with references to The Lord of the Rings. It shows miniature figures of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, flames in their eyes, starting a war while looking at Epstein Files. It’s astonishing, depicting a war fought on social platforms.
