Is America losing the information war? A flood of AI-generated videos, often featuring US and Israeli politicians as LEGO figures, are shifting global opinion in favour of Iran.
Iran’s ‘Lego slopaganda’ reaches millions
Weird timeline: This AI-made cartoon appears to show a downed American airman fleeing from Iranians (in Lego format). The scene is a mixture of reality and fiction — an American airman did land in Iran after his plane was shot from the sky, but there is no evidence he was chased on the ground by the local Iranians who were looking for him before he was rescued by US troops. Glossary
Republican Party - Also known as the Grand Old Party or GOP, it is one of the USA's two major political parties. Its first president was Abraham Lincoln. It sits on the right of the political spectrum.
Democratic - A democratic election is one where all eligible citizens are free to vote, where votes are counted fairly and all political parties have fair and free access to communicate with voters.
Iran - A country in Western Asia, officially called the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has a population of 84 million.
AI - A computer programme that has been designed to think.
Slopaganda - A portmanteau of "AI slop" (low-quality AI videos or images) and "propaganda" (information, which may be biased or misleading, used to promote a certain viewpoint).
PR - Public Relations — the practice of managing how others see a brand or person.
Authoritarian - Enforcing strict obedience to authority.
Jeffrey Epstein - He was a financier arrested in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking. He was denied bail ahead of his trail and died while in jail. His death has been officially ruled a suicide by the New York City medical examiner, though a pathologist hired by Epstein's brother claims it may have been a murder.
Antisemitic - Hostile to or prejudiced against Jewish people.
Unilaterally - Deciding on or doing something without asking or agreeing with others.
Strait of Hormuz - A narrow stretch of water between Iran, the UAE and Oman. It connects the Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, and is thus a vital global shipping route, with 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas normally passing through the strait.