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Iran·United States·Disinformation

Iran deploys AI memes and pop culture in propaganda campaign targeting US audiences

Monday, 20 April 2026, 12:11 · 1 min read

Pro-Iranian media groups have flooded social media with AI-generated, Lego-style animated videos featuring rap soundtracks that mock Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu and US foreign policy — content that has accumulated billions of views since late February. The campaign, led most visibly by the X account Explosive Media, whose spokesperson acknowledged to the BBC that the Iranian government is a client, has been dubbed "slopaganda" for its deliberately low-fi aesthetic that nonetheless closely mimics mainstream internet culture. Experts warn the strategy is effective precisely because it bypasses traditional news consumers entirely, reaching politically disengaged audiences through humor before they realise they are consuming foreign state propaganda — exploiting a media environment shaped by decades of political satire from shows like The Daily Show, in which comedy became a trusted vehicle for political understanding.

Sources
RapplerIran’s AI memes are reaching people, and winning the propaganda war ↗︎
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