As the conflict between Iran and the US continues, Iran’s strategy of using Lego-styled videos and memes is further blurring the line between entertainment and propaganda, while aiming to deepen divisions within the US.

“They are not taking their strategy too seriously,” said ISD Senior Director of Information Operations Bret Schafer to the Wall Street Journal. 

Iran has long relied on a communications strategy aimed at reaching Western audiences through a more serious tone, “drawing from the martyrdom iconography so deeply rooted in Shia Islam and the Soviet-style, anti-American symbolism of the 1979 revolution,” the WSJ writes. But while officials recognized this approach was failing to resonate with younger, more globalized audiences, the killing of older generation senior leaders at the beginning of the conflict appears to have prompted a shift in strategy.

Now, with the support of external entities operating with degrees of financial help from the government, video content drawing on global pop culture—later amplified by pro-Iranian groups and the country’s diplomatic missions—is gaining significant traction.

“We are seeing those accounts getting the traction you would expect from high-profile individuals,” said Bret, noting that online engagement has gone up 30 times since before the war began, particularly through content trolling the US and its president.