Tel Aviv, MINA – Israel has been pouring large sums of money into paying social media influencers up to $7,000 (around Rp110 million) per post in an effort to flood platforms such as TikTok and Instagram with pro-Israel content.
The move comes amid mounting global outrage over Israel’s ongoing military assault on Gaza, which has killed more than 68,000 Palestinians since October 2023.
According to Middle East Monitor, documents filed under the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) revealed that Israel’s Foreign Ministry, through its contractor Bridges Partners, launched the so-called “Esther Project.” With a budget of about $900,000, the campaign funded between 75–90 paid posts from June to September 2024.
In addition, Israel awarded a $6 million contract to Clock Tower X LLC, a company led by Brad Parscale, former campaign manager for Donald Trump. The project targeted younger audiences by amplifying pro-Israel narratives across platforms, while also manipulating search engine algorithms and even AI-generated responses (including ChatGPT) through predictive search engine optimization (SEO) strategies.
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The plan also involved creating a network of pro-Israel websites designed to shape how the Israel-Palestine issue is framed online. By saturating the digital space with selective narratives, the campaign aimed to tilt both public opinion and AI-generated content in Israel’s favor.
These aggressive digital propaganda efforts reflect Israel’s declining popularity, particularly among young Americans. A recent survey showed that only 9 percent of U.S. citizens aged 18–34 support Israel’s military actions. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself acknowledged that the digital sphere has become “the most important front” in justifying Israel’s war.[]
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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