President Donald Trump stated on Sunday that Iran is leveraging AI technology as a “disinformation weapon” aimed at misleading and demoralizing the American public.
Trump remarked, “Iran has a history of being adept in media manipulation and public relations. They may be militarily weak, but they excel at feeding false narratives to a willing fake news media.”
“AI has become yet another disinformation weapon for Iran, and it seems to be effective, especially as they face destruction daily,” he added.
The president pointed to several instances of Iranian media manipulation, mentioning “fake ‘kam balloon’ incidents on vessels at sea,” assertions that Iran brought down five U.S. refueling planes, and doctored images of “fires in buildings and ships,” including the USS Abraham Lincoln.
Trump described these articles as “deliberately fake” and suggested that American media outlets supporting them should face treason charges for spreading false information.
“The reality is, Iran is on the path to destruction, and the only ‘victories’ they achieve are those fabricated through AI and broadcasted by corrupt media. The radical left press recognizes this but continues to propagate lies,” he stated.
He expressed excitement at seeing Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr “investigating the licensing of some corrupt, unpatriotic ‘news’ organizations.”
This seemed to refer to Carr’s social media post, pointing out that “broadcast stations disseminating misinformation have a chance to correct their course before their licenses come up for renewal.”
He emphasized, “The law is clear: broadcasters must function in the public interest, or they risk losing their licenses.”
According to him, restoring trust in the media, often labeled as fake news, is crucial.
Speaking to reporters the next day, he noted that the only realm where Iran holds an advantage is in information warfare.
“They displayed images of a building in Tel Aviv ablaze, skyscrapers on fire, and structures in Qatar and Saudi Arabia going up in flames, which were entirely fabricated through AI. It’s the worst kind of artificial intelligence—really terrible. I believe that’s the only battlefield they dominate,” he remarked.
Furthermore, he criticized fake news around suicide boats, reflecting on images from Basra, Iraq, depicting an Iranian boat allegedly attacking two fuel tankers, resulting in casualties.
Although Iranian state media claimed this attack occurred, it wasn’t extensively covered by Western outlets.
An article from a well-known UK publication pointed out that AI-generated disinformation is proliferating on social media, suggesting Iran’s false military successes against the U.S. and Israel.
Further commentary from a renowned New York publication highlighted that during Operation Epic Fury, a flood of AI-generated fake videos inundated social networks, depicting non-existent explosions and fictitious war protests.
This misinformation has reportedly gained millions of views across platforms like X, TikTok, and Facebook, creating a disturbing experience regarding public perception.
Recently, the United Arab Emirates announced the arrest of 35 individuals from nine countries for disseminating misleading video content that undermines security efforts.
The suspects were charged with incorporating real footage with AI images to misrepresent explosions and attacks on notable locations within the UAE.
