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Coordinated Anti-Israel Propaganda Campaign Blindsided the West after Oct. 7
(Times of Israel) Dave Gordon - Shortly after the Hamas atrocities of October 7, 2023, Canadian political strategist Warren Kinsella began noticing the fingerprints of a professional propaganda campaign, documented in his new book, The Hidden Hand: The Information War and the Rise of Antisemitic Propaganda. Hamas and its networks, along with their Western followers, had thousands of social media accounts primed, protest banners ready, and talking points translated into multiple languages long before the IDF response to the carnage had even begun. What may appear to be spontaneous outrage on Western streets and social feeds was, in fact, a coordinated political operation that could only be executed by state actors and professional agitators. Jew-hatred is being mainstreamed by outlaw states and extremist groups who use tools of modern campaigning. And, he says, Western democracies have barely begun to respond. In October 2023, "there were thousands of protests around the planet using the same slogans," said Kinsella. That was either "one hell of a coincidence" or evidence of central planning. U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines has accused Iran of seeking to fund and encourage anti-Israel protests. Kinsella said, "The bad guys have unlimited resources and armies of propaganda," with which they have successfully convinced Westerners that Israel is a "white supremacist colonial state bent on destroying a powerless non-white minority." The book cites Marc Ginsberg, head of the Washington-based Coalition for a Safer Web, who claims Iran and Qatar were two of the top funders of paid protesters, professional organizers, and top-tier lobby efforts. "These anti-Israel pro-Hamas people are well supported," Kinsella said. The campaign found fertile ground on campus quads, where fringe pro-Palestinian groups had already built networks. Activists arrive in rental vans, unload professionally printed signs that can cost up to $100 each, lay out food and drink, and distribute scripts and legal hotlines in case of arrest. Organizers in reflective vests and walkie-talkies marshal chants and photo ops.