Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d type: The propaganda coming out of Iran is having a moment. Since the first days of the U.S.-Israeli attack on that nation, a group calling itself Explosive Media has been releasing AI-generated memes excoriating Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the president’s closest advisers.
This in itself isn’t extraordinary, especially when one of the most prolific generators of hyperbolic, incendiary digital misinformation is the White House. In the battle for hearts and minds, the president’s social media team has, among other affronts, ripped off Studio Ghibli’s animation style to cutesify its deportation efforts. More recently, it ran afoul of Pokémon’s legions by cribbing that franchise’s signature font and imagery.
