Trump's Epstein links exploited by Iran as conspiracy theories transform into war weapon
Disinformation has exploded on social media since U.S. and Israeli bombs started dropping in Iran.
Iranian state media and pro-Tehran propaganda networks have tapped into the conspiracy theory that President Donald Trump launched the joint military operation to distract from his presence in the Jeffrey Epstein files, and the content has linked both U.S. and Israeli leaders to the late sex offender to portray them as corrupt and depraved, reported the Washington Post.
"While such content often fails to gain much traction outside Iran, the message is spreading through generically named 'news' accounts that researchers say appear to be using the Epstein conspiracy theories to serve pro-Iran talking points to a global audience," the Post reported.
Nikita Bier, head of product for X, announced last week that users who post “AI-generated videos of an armed conflict” without disclosure would face 90-day suspensions from monetizing their content on the platform, with permanent bans looming over further violations. She said the company would work to flag that content as misleading or false.
“During times of war, it is critical that people have access to authentic information on the ground,” Bier said in an X post. “We will continue to refine our policies and product to ensure X can be trusted during these critical moments.”
Much of the content is explicitly antisemitic, according to researchers from the Anti-Defamation League, with some of the posts linking Epstein, who was Jewish, to Operation Epic Fury, which was branded "Epstein Fury" in at least 90,000 posts in the war's first three days.
"It isn’t only pro-Tehran accounts that are drawing those connections," the Post reported. "Hours after the strikes, Candace Owens, the American right-wing political commentator who has more than 5.9 million subscribers on YouTube, re-shared a post on X that included an AI-generated image of Trump flanked by Israel flags and suggested that the United States was 'blowing up' Iranians because it’s 'controlled by' Jews. Owens added her own caption: 'Operation Epstein Fury fully explained.'"
At least one of the pro-Tehran accounts on X shared a post by Owens that accused Israel of orchestrating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, but she rejected complaints that she was fueling antisemitism.
“Of course I stand by my post," Owens told the Post. "Israel is a filthy, terrorist state that mass murders children and Christians.”
X is banned in Iran, but that country's leaders have long maintained accounts on the platform to project their message around the world, and an expert explained how those efforts can shift public opinion.
Emerson Brooking, director of strategy at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab told the Post that "the impact of any given piece of propaganda or disinformation may be limited, even if it finds a large audience," the newspaper reported. "But in aggregate, they can spur shifts in public opinion over time, especially when they reinforce narratives — such as the idea that Trump attacked Iran to distract from the Epstein files — that many people were already inclined to believe."