Iran War in the Age of Memes and Online Battlefields
Psychologists say the White House’s “meme-ization” of war on social media can help soften the impact of war.
Now in its second month, the Iran war has moved from the Middle East to social media platforms, where memes, pop culture clips and video game visuals are influencing how the conflict is perceived.
From SpongeBob jokes to video game mashups, U.S. government accounts and pro-Iranian voices are exchanging viral posts that mock opponents, rally supporters, and shape public opinion.
Psychologists say this trend, also known as “memetic warfare,” can make military operations feel controlled, playful, and even heroic, while softening the real-world impact.
“These memes normalize hypermasculine, militaristic responses and encourage people to automatically accept policies that look very different in a calm press conference,” Pamela Rutledge, a media psychologist and director of the Center for Media Psychology, told USA TODAY.
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The White House’s official social media pages frequently feature animated content, pop culture references, sports clips, and iconic American images such as bald eagles and the American flag. When the war started, posts increased and became more patriotic and pointed.
Some posts feature familiar songs such as Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird,” with dramatic beats dropping over clips of explosions. There are also animated adaptations of popular video games, such as Nintendo’s Wii Sports remake, where a golf swing or arrow shot ends with an explosion.
Some of those posts have garnered hundreds of thousands of views and likes, many with captions about continuing goals and America’s strength.
While Iranian central government accounts have not posted any memes, some Iranian embassies and pro-Iranian social media accounts have responded with their own content criticizing the US government.
Posts from Iranian embassies in Lebanon, Afghanistan and South Africa include cartoons depicting President Donald Trump setting himself on fire and standing next to a damaged Air Force One.
Pro-Iranian accounts also created memes to counter the U.S. message. One X account has garnered attention for an AI-generated animated video depicting President Trump as a Lego-style character, appearing to be stressed and screaming as Iran attacks a U.S. ship.
Rutledge, of the Center for Media Psychology, said that for the United States, video helps create a narrative that portrays war as a game that can be controlled and won.
“By flooding their feeds with gaming clips, superhero memes, and hot reels of dominant jokes, these campaigns encourage people, especially young men, to view war through the lens of heroic excitement, which is inevitable and even desirable,” Rutledge said. “This allows policy to feel right without anyone having to face reality.”
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While the physical battle is ongoing, Rutledge said, memes also signal an online battle of perceptions by shaping who is cast as the hero and who is portrayed as the enemy.
“Good memes evoke emotions, such as humor, anger, moral judgment, and group belonging,” Rutledge said. “Humor lowers defenses, suspends critical analysis, and strengthens social bonds. Heroic and dominant cues make the message feel morally righteous. This is a powerful combination when trying to sell war to an audience overloaded with anxiety.”
White House posts rely on what Rutledge calls “cultural containers,” shared references that viewers already understand and feel connected to, such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Wii Sports, Pixar movies, Call of Duty, and Marvel characters.
Associating familiar symbols with images of war can overwhelm new information and “purify the message with nostalgia while trivializing violence and human life,” Rutledge said.
Arienne Ferchaux, an associate professor at Florida State University, said humor has long been used to criticize and respond to crises, but the impact changes when the message comes from the government.
“If people are naturally accessing these memes… that’s telling you something about the nature of society, right? It’s telling you something about how people feel about society,” Fershaw told USA TODAY. “But when it comes from the government, you don’t get that kind of social comment because it comes from people in power.”
Additionally, presenting war updates in a tongue-in-cheek, meme-driven format can help minimize the fear of military action and make it more palatable to viewers, she added.
“The goal is to create a certain message and a certain emotion. We don’t want people to think, ‘This is a very serious issue where people are dying and it’s unjust,'” Fershaw said. “If we want to go over there and fight, we don’t want people to think that. It’s thoughtful and intentional.”
Kate Perez covers national trends and breaking news for USA TODAY. You can reach her at kperez@usatodayco.com or X @katecperez_.
