I've always liked Daniel and admired his flair for turning heads with his bold, brilliant style—it's a talent that's hard to ignore. But this time, writing this feels like a gut punch, something I don't want to do but know I must. His latest claim crosses a line that can't be brushed off, and it's with a heavy heart I have to call it out.
By using "propaganda" in his claim that he "was offered to be paid to go to Israel on a propaganda tour," he's suggesting the Israeli government is behind a manipulative scheme to control narratives through him—a drag queen with a flair for headlines. Propaganda, to be clear, is information deliberately shaped to sway opinions, like state-run campaigns pushing a narrative, not some glitzy influencer gig. The suggestion? His use of "propaganda" implies Israel picked him to peddle their story, as if he's got the clout to shift worldviews. Honestly, it's hard not to chuckle at the sheer ego of it. Israel, with its actual diplomats, picking him? That's not strategy; it's a sitcom pitch.
But this isn't just a laughable flex—it's dangerous. His story leans on an antisemitic trope, hinting at a scheming Jewish state buying influence, and he's feeding it to followers who might nod along, starry-eyed. That's reckless. This exact post spreads lies, and he's been obsessively spreading Hamas propaganda across his social media.
Take that banal meme he posted of five kids on a couch with a sign screaming, "EVERY CHILD IN THIS PHOTO WAS KILLED BY AN ISRAELI AIRSTRIKE. Did your brain grasp that?" It's just a meme, not a fact or news, yet it's meant to gut-punch. Or consider his other post:
"Anyone upset that people do not support Israel? I have a question for you all. How is anyone in their right mind able to stand up and say we support the death of 50,000 people and the people that did it? I don't think so."
That's understandable—he's got no clue what's going on in the Middle East but still swings a strong, trendy opinion. Talking about propaganda, he spreads exactly that, and I can forgive him that as the propaganda taps into emotions. Hamas inflates numbers of dead children, mixing real casualties with unverified claims to shock the world—sometimes even recycling old photos from unrelated conflicts as "proof." They've been known to place weapons near schools or mosques, using kids as shields to deter strikes, then cry foul when tragedy hits. Fake memes and doctored images flood social media, painting Israel as the sole villain in a complex war. If I didn't know the subject so well, I could fall for it too, so I don't blame him entirely. It's the classic blood libel, like medieval tales of Jews killing children to incite hate, a lie that still festers today. I can't forgive people like Peter Tatchell, who's supposed to be an intellectual, but Lismore never occurred to me as a very deep thinker, so I let that slide—lies, though, those I cannot forgive. His tale adds fuel, cheapening real pain for a quick ego boost, and that's no small sin.
Such claims revive antisemitic stereotypes—ugly myths that cast Jewish people or Israel as cunning puppet-masters orchestrating global affairs. Born from centuries of prejudice, these ideas aren't just nonsense; they're dangerous, fuelling mistrust and justifying harm. When he tosses out this "propaganda tour" yarn, he's not merely fibbing—he's leaning into a caricature that thrives on division. His followers, lapping it up without question, spread it further, risking real-world consequences. Activism isn't a trendy game to play for likes, yet he hops from cause to cause, treating grave issues like props for his personal stage. That's not clever; it's reckless, turning suffering into a punchline when the world needs truth, not clichés.
Other Propaganda Groups Spinning the Narrative
It’s not just Middle East players. Russia’s Internet Research Agency, for one, got nabbed pushing fake accounts to stir the pot globally, from anti-Israel rants to divisive political spats. They don't care about the cause; they just want chaos, and they'll use any trendy hashtag to get it. If Lismore's scrolling through this stuff, no wonder he's parroting it—those posts are built to hook the well-meaning but clueless. The common thread? They all bank on emotions over facts, tossing out lies like confetti to keep the outrage machine humming. It's a grim game, and every click's a point for division, not clarity.
China's no slouch either. Through TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, they've got a knack for tweaking algorithms to bury content critical of Beijing—say, anything about Hong Kong protests—while boosting feel-good clips or anti-Western jabs. It's subtle but ruthless, nudging users toward narratives that paint China as the good guy. Lismore's trendy outrage fits right in with these curated feeds, where a meme or a rant can spread faster than a mate's gossip. Both nations know how to play the heartstrings, not the head, tossing out lies like confetti to keep the outrage machine humming. It's a grim game, and every swipe's a win for division, not truth.