‘Boom Boom’ US propaganda vs. the emerging Iran war reality

The article says the US government doesn’t simply want Americans to support the war it launched with Israel on Iran; it wants to pump people up through stylized propaganda videos.

“A version of this story appeared in CNN’s What Matters newsletter”

CNN

The Pentagon, the White House and US Central Command are “meme-ifying” war, echoing a sensibility the Department of Homeland Security used to turn mass deportation into Hollywood-style action vignettes.

CNN

Social media amplification and AI-generated fakes complicate verification, and CNN notes Iran has promoted obviously fake videos purporting to show captured American soldiers and bombs hitting Tel Aviv, neither of which is true.

CNN describes a string of production-style videos that foreground weapons systems and stylized effects while omitting images of casualties.

One video features audio from President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio set to an updated version of John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom,” showing missiles striking targets without showing suffering.

CNN

US Central Command posted slowed explosions ending with an “Operation Epic Fury” logo, the “deptofwar” account used captions such as “This is NOT a fair fight,” and Pete Hegseth said “We are punching them while they’re down.”

The article highlights a concrete clash between the propaganda and reporting on the ground over a strike on a girls’ school.

“A version of this story appeared in CNN’s What Matters newsletter”

CNN

Iranian state media says the death toll is 168 children and 14 teachers, and CNN’s analysis and other news organizations suggest the school, which is near a military base, may have been struck by a Tomahawk missile.

The US military says its investigation continues, and President Trump has alternately suggested the missile might have originated elsewhere, said he would “live with” the investigation’s outcome, and earlier said he thought the strike was “done by Iran.”

CNN reporters Fred Pleitgen and photojournalist Claudia Otto are reporting from inside Iran, where they witnessed waves of heavy airstrikes; CNN says it operates in Iran with government permission while maintaining editorial control.

Domestically, polls suggest most Americans disapprove of the war though a majority of Republicans support it, and the administration’s social-media-driven messaging has not fully persuaded the public.

CNN

The article also recounts administration controversies: Trump joked about the navy preferring to sink ships, the military released a video of the first torpedo sinking by the US Navy since World War II, the White House posted footage of a dignified transfer with “Amazing Grace” and the tagline “Freedom is never free,” and former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem testified under oath that Trump approved a $220 million ad campaign that featured her and produced a subcontract for the husband of a now-former DHS spokesperson, a detail reported by ProPublica that Trump told Reuters he did not remember.