By Lea Marchl, Sofia Rubinson, Ines Chomnalez, Juliette Schofield, Mascha Wolf, Isis Blachez,
NewsGuard has identified 160 false claims related to the conflict that collectively have garnered hundreds of millions of views.
NewsGuard identified three themes related to the 160 false narratives: They overwhelmingly push a pro-Iran agenda; they have evolved from using misrepresented photos and videos to fabricated AI-generated imagery; and increasingly, they involve assertions that authentic media publishing accurate stories is actually AI-generation of false claims.
While pro-Iran claims have dominated NewsGuard’s database, only a handful were originated by Iranian state media, NewsGuard found. This could be a reflection of the damage that sustained U.S. and Israeli bombing has inflicted on Iranian leadership and infrastructure, including the shelling of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) headquarters. Moreover, NewsGuard has previously found that compared to Russia and China, the Iranian regime is a far less prolific producer of disinformation.
Researchers, platforms, advertisers, government agencies, or other institutions interested in licensing the full list of domains or False Claim Fingerprints debunkings of the full list of false claims related to the 2026 Iran war can contact us...
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