Western Media Discovers 'Iran Protests' But Forgets 'Intelligence Operations'
France 24 reports on 'Iran protests,' diligently fact-checking claims of AI manipulation and turnout numbers, as if the only questions are about crowd size and digital fakery. What’s consistently overlooked is the well-documented history of covert operations aimed at destabilizing Iran, from the 1953 CIA-orchestrated coup that overthrew Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh to contemporary
destabilization efforts. One might wonder why 'foreign influence operations' never make it onto the media's fact-checking agenda when discussing countries targeted for regime change. Instead of genuinely examining the complexities of internal dissent versus external meddling, the narrative often frames any unrest as purely organic, untainted by the substantial resources poured into 'democracy
promotion' by agencies like the National Endowment for Democracy (which, according to its own website, has funded groups working in Iran). It appears that scrutinizing the motives and methods of those pushing for regime change is simply not good for business, or perhaps, for the desired geopolitical outcome. The real 'AI manipulation' might be the artificial intelligence of perception management.