Israel reportedly used fake social accounts to garner support from US lawmakers

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Scope of Israel’s Online Influence Campaign

  • Article describes Israeli-run fake social accounts targeting US lawmakers and US audiences; many commenters say this is unsurprising and fits modern information warfare.
  • Some see it as part of a broader, organized “hasbara” ecosystem (AIPAC, public diplomacy units, previous social media efforts); others stress that many states, including allies, run influence operations.

Effectiveness and Targets

  • Several argue such bot campaigns are likely ineffective on members of Congress, who delegate social media and respond more to lobbying, calls, and donations.
  • Others counter that the true targets are:
    • Staffers, consultants, and pollsters.
    • “Low-information” voters who shape the climate around lawmakers.
    • Social media platforms where volume can manufacture apparent consensus.
  • There is disagreement on whether current Israeli propaganda is sophisticated or “obvious and clumsy.”

Comparisons to Other Countries

  • Many draw parallels to Russian, Chinese, Iranian, Qatari, and British WWII propaganda.
  • Some say US interference abroad dwarfs others, and that “everyone does it”; others respond that doing it to your top ally’s lawmakers (while receiving large US aid) is different in kind.

Lobbying, Dual Loyalty, and Antisemitism

  • A large subthread debates:
    • AIPAC’s outsized role in US primaries and donations.
    • Whether any US lawmakers are dual US–Israeli citizens (several say current evidence points to none).
    • Israel’s Law of Return vs. actual citizenship.
  • Some see criticism of AIPAC and “dual citizens” as veering into antisemitic “dual loyalty” tropes; others insist the core issue is foreign influence, not Jewish identity.

Broader Propaganda & Information-Warfare Context

  • Commenters link this to:
    • Cyber commands and “fifth-generation warfare.”
    • Historical media manipulation (Manufacturing Consent, Iraq War coverage, Bernays/PR).
    • The ease, scale, and low cost of social media propaganda vs. earlier eras.
  • Several stress that propaganda often leverages existing strong opinions rather than changing minds from scratch.

HN Moderation & Meta

  • Multiple comments note Israel/Gaza threads getting rapidly flagged.
  • A moderator explains that:
    • Political stories, especially on this conflict, are frequently flagged by users.
    • Mods selectively unflag some when there’s significant new information and potential for substantive discussion, to keep HN from being overwhelmed by politics.