AI-Driven Propaganda in Lego Style: A Viral Campaign for Iran
At first glance, these videos resemble scenes from a Lego movie, though they are more dynamic and intense. Featuring dramatic imagery of dying children, fighter jets, and U.S. President Donald Trump, they are not just playful animations but a potent form of pro-Iranian propaganda. The clips, which have gained widespread attention, are crafted to mirror the iconic Lego aesthetic, blending simplicity with striking visual impact.
A Representative of Explosive Media: The Man Behind the Scenes
For the BBC podcast *Top Comment*, we spoke to a representative of Explosive Media, a key producer of these AI-generated clips. He requested to be referred to as Mr. Explosive, describing himself as a skilled social media strategist. Initially, he denied any ties to the Iranian government, but after further discussion, he acknowledged Iran as a “customer,” a term he had not previously confirmed publicly.
“Possibly there was no lost pilot, there was no rescue operation. Their main goal was to steal uranium from Iran.”
Their central narrative highlights Iran’s struggle against the United States, portraying the U.S. as a dominant global force. The videos are colorful and bold, lacking subtlety, yet they have sparked fervent engagement online. In one clip, Trump is shown falling through a storm of “Epstein file” documents as rap lyrics declare, “the secrets are leaking, the pressure is rising.” Another features George Floyd beneath a policeman’s boot, accompanied by the message that “Iran is standing here for everyone your system ever wronged.”
Expert Perspectives: The Power of AI in Propaganda
Dr. Emma Briant, a leading propaganda analyst, argues that “slopaganda”—a term coined in an academic paper as a play on “AI slop”—fails to capture the impact of these “highly sophisticated” clips. According to Briant, AI tools, trained on Western data, enable authoritarian regimes to craft culturally relevant content, a gap they’ve previously struggled to fill. Dr. Tine Munk, a cyber warfare expert at Nottingham Trent University, labels Iran’s tactics as “defensive memetic warfare,” a strategy to counter U.S. narratives.
Explosive Media’s videos emerged in early 2025, but their popularity surged during the U.S.-Iran conflict. The clips now incorporate precise details of Gulf locations, such as power stations, airports, and industrial sites, depicting them as entirely destroyed by Iranian missiles. Despite factual discrepancies, the videos have successfully shaped perceptions among English-speaking audiences.
Factual Inaccuracies and Alternative Narratives
One video claims the Iranian military captured a U.S. pilot after his aircraft was shot down. However, U.S. officials confirmed the pilot was rescued by special forces on April 4. Mr. Explosive dismissed this, insisting the focus was on “stealing uranium,” not rescuing a pilot. When challenged with evidence of the pilot’s treatment in Kuwait, he retorted, “Only 13% of what Mr. Trump says is based on facts.”
“Only 13% of what Mr. Trump says is based on facts.”
Such narratives are amplified by influencers like @newswithsteph, who called the Lego-style videos “shockingly accurate” in depicting a U.S. mission as a “special ops mission for uranium.” The use of AI allows Iran and its allies to bypass traditional media, directly engaging Western viewers with a blend of familiar visuals and ideological messaging.
Iranian and Russian state media accounts on X frequently share these clips, reaching millions. The team behind Explosive Media, which numbers fewer than ten members, relies on Lego-style graphics because “it is a world language,” as Mr. Explosive explained. This approach, combined with strategic storytelling, has turned the videos into a viral tool for shaping global opinion.
