X Is Drowning in Disinformation Following US and Israeli Attack on Iran

[douglas9]

Minutes after Donald Trump announced that the US and Israeli governments had launched a “major combat operation” against Iran in the early hours of Saturday morning, disinformation about the attack and Tehran’s response flooded X.

WIRED has reviewed hundreds of posts on X, some of which have racked up millions of views, that promote misleading claims about the locations and scale of the attack.

Elon Musk’s social media platform is a verifiable mess: In some cases, alleged video footage of the attack shared in posts on X are actually months or years old. In several posts, video footage of apparent attacks have been attributed to incorrect locations. A number of images shared on X appear to be altered or generated with AI. Other posts attempt to pass off video game footage as scenes from the conflict.

X did not respond to a request for comment. Under Musk’s stewardship, X has become a haven for disinformation, especially during major breaking-news events. At the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, and more recently during anti-immigration enforcement protests in LA, the platform has drowned in inaccurate and faulty posts.

https://www.wired.com/story/x-is-drowning-in-disinformation-following-us-and-israels-attack-on-iran/

[calguy]

1. Same thing on Facebook

It seems like they have a misinformation PR campaign with old pictures and videos, along with a trove of AI images ready to go before they do anything.

[The Wizard]

2. X is a cesspool

[sleroy49]

4. Totally agree

I jump on there every now and then just to screw with MAGA, and by that I mean I point out the truth. It's a complete cesspool and an echo chamber for MAGA.

[womanofthehills]

13. If it's disinformation, it's usually caught in comments

You just need to follow good people. The info on X is off the wall. Following all our Congresspeople, good reporters, independent reporters, world news agencies X is what you make it.

[OrlandoDem2]

3. Do people get paid to post pro-Trump crap on X?

It’s the only way k can figure that any sane person would post the word vomit they do in constant and repeated praise of Trump.

[yardwork]

8. Yes, and then AI amplifies it.

[Ponietz]

5. How anyone could patronize X et al. is beyond me -- Joseph Goebbels is the moderator

[Lovie777]

6. X is pure propaganda.................

[womanofthehills]

16. All of our gov reps post on X

You don’t have to follow Republicans - although following them is great now with the Republican civil war going on and so many hating Trump.

[mwooldri]

7. Why I'm sticking to reputable sources.

X is not a reputable source. Practically most social media isn't reputable. I'll trust the BBC. the Grauniad, heck I might trust the Wall St Journal.... From professional journalists, from the professional media.

[ProfessorGAC]

11. Well, That Leaves Out CBS!

And Faux & CNN.

[womanofthehills]

17. Reputable sources all post on X

You can build your own feed and block anyone you want.

[somsai]

9. Every middle eastern government posts to X, as well as every US journalist

senators, congress, the Iranian government, etc. If they don't actively post, they at least follow to see what everyone else is saying. Obama, AOC, Harris, everyone. I searched both of my Dem senator's accounts to read their carefully worded statement on Iran.

There are also people paid by Russia and China to sow disinformation and thousands of private actors doing the same. Simply curate who you follow and you eliminate 99% of the garbage. You can always go back and read by topic to get most everything posted on a breaking news story.

The thing with free speech is everyone gets to speak and maybe some of it is not exactly true. Some of it is true though and maybe not covered via regular outlets. Or worst of all maybe some of the information given is true and flies contrary to how I had already made up my mind.

Often there are two sides to a story, and it's real healthy to hear the other side. Political websites are silos of group think, which is fun but can lead to being uninformed, and eventually reality catches up to those of us who like to fool ourselves.

[leftstreet]

15. +1

[Glaisne]

10. The Republicans are trying to do the same with the rest of the news media. nt

[GreatGazoo]

12. "Truth is the first casualty of war" - Aeschylus

People are naturally going to try and make sense of the senseless. Making that even harder is the onslaught of propaganda and censorship.

[gulliver]

14. Avoiding info from "no names" is essential

I don't take the word of anyone who doesn't have a strong presence and reputation in society. It's never been a good idea to trust people or organizations based on feels. For example, on Facebook, you might as well skip every political comment from every relative unless it's accompanied by a link to a strong source.

Good sources also have biases, so then you have to compare them.

[David__77]

18. I am much more concerned that this country is committing a war of aggression against Iran.

[milestogo]

19. get off X and get off Facebook

These are shitty platforms for TSF lovers.