{"id":350130,"date":"2025-12-15T13:27:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T13:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/350130\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T13:27:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T13:27:09","slug":"virality-rumors-and-lies-us-federal-agencies-mimic-trump-on-social-media-donald-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/350130\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Virality, rumors and lies\u2019: US federal agencies mimic Trump on social media | Donald Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Donald Trump<\/a> posted during his first term on what was then called Twitter, his attacks and rants differed significantly from US federal agency staff\u2019s more cautious and traditional approach on social media.<\/p>\n

For example, in January 2017, in response to scrutiny of one of the president\u2019s executive orders, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted<\/a>: \u201cWe are & will remain in compliance with judicial orders. We are & will continue to enforce @POTUS\u2019s EO humanely and with professionalism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Trump posted<\/a>: \u201cThe FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes<\/a>, @NBCNews<\/a>, @ABC<\/a>, @CBS<\/a>, @CNN<\/a>) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!\u201d<\/p>\n

These days? There is little, if any, space between the incendiary nature of the US president\u2019s posts and, for instance, Immigration and Customs Enforcement\u2019s (ICE) memes and videos promoting its deportation efforts.<\/p>\n

Much of the federal bureaucracy is also now deliberately provocative on social media, using memes and humor and insults. That coordination of style between Trump and the agencies that carry out his policies further inflames public discourse on serious issues, according to people who study the relationship between political speech and technology.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an acceleration and escalation of what was done because now the official take of these agencies is to propagandize, is to disinform, is to lie and is to polarize,\u201d said Ramesh Srinivasan, professor of information studies at University of California, Los Angeles. \u201cThat wasn\u2019t necessarily official state policy or messaging in the first administration because there were far fewer yes men, or in the case of [the DHS secretary,] Kristi Noem, yes women.\u201d<\/p>\n

Posts that illustrate this trend from Trump\u2019s second term include the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, facing scrutiny over a strike killing survivors of a US attack, posting an image<\/a> depicting a beloved children\u2019s character aiming a rocket launcher at a cluster of boats; the White House account playing on the ASMR trend by sharing a video<\/a> that featured the sounds of chains, with people about to be deported in handcuffs; and a recent run<\/a> of Christmas-themed<\/a> posts from DHS and ICE.<\/p>\n

\u201cYOU\u2019RE GOING HO HO HOME<\/a>,\u201d reads text from a DHS post on X that features images of officers with guns, wearing camouflage, face shields \u2013 and Santa hats. They also feature a Christmas tree and a riot shield with the words, \u201cMerry Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such posts are reminiscent of propaganda from authoritarian regimes, Srinivasan said.<\/p>\n

He cited the Rwanda genocide, where Hutus promoted the slaughter of Tutsis by describing them as \u201ccockroaches<\/a>\u201d on radio broadcasts, and the Myanmar genocide, where the regime used Facebook<\/a> to incite violence against Rohingya Muslims. (An independent group commissioned by Facebook determined the platform had \u201cbecome a means for those seeking to spread hate and cause harm, and posts have been linked to offline violence\u201d.)<\/p>\n

Unlike radio, which just broadcasts messages, users inhabit social media and see content based on data gathered about them, Srinivasan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt empowers these platforms to target you on a psychological level,\u201d Srinivasan said<\/p>\n

And while the governments have different aims, the common idea is to \u201cdivide and conquer\u201d, said Srinivasan. They use \u201camplification, virality, rumors and lies to make subhuman whatever population they choose\u201d.<\/p>\n

DHS this week launched a website<\/a> titled \u201cARRESTED: WORST OF THE WORST.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cICE Arrests Worst of the Worst Criminal Illegal Aliens Including Pedophiles, Armed Robbers, and Drug Traffickers,\u201d Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, posted on social media with a link to the website.<\/p>\n

ICE data<\/a> shows, however, that most people the agency has arrested or detained did not have criminal records.<\/p>\n

But such social media posts make some people more accepting of \u201cdehumanizing acts on\u201d the immigrants \u201cup to and including violence\u201d, said Kurt Braddock, American University assistant professor of public communication.<\/p>\n

The government also uses \u201crage bait\u201d to excite Trump\u2019s supporters and troll those who disagree with them, said Joan Donovan, assistant professor of journalism and emerging media studies at Boston University. (Oxford University Press declared rage bait<\/a> its 2025 word of the year.)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is fulfilling the Trump agenda of upsetting and calling attention to these issues so that other politicians will comment on it and hopefully it will become a newsworthy story,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cIt shows up in the newspaper; it\u2019s reported on television, and so there is a bit of a shock and awe campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n

By having it appear on television, that also makes the messaging more likely to reach and please Trump, who consumes lots of broadcast news, Donovan pointed out.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, such posts can make opponents of the Trump administration feel like there is no point in trying to resist such actions, Srinivasan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea is to put out content that is incredibly inflammatory. That works extremely well with the algorithms,\u201d Srinivasan said. \u201cYou put material out that seems to be from the state\u201d which makes people think, Hhow do I even stop the state? That is the powerless feeling people have\u201d.<\/p>\n

Some Americans see the Christmas posts as especially offensive.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is profoundly disturbing to see AI-generated Christmas imagery used in a social media campaign to promote anti-immigrant rhetoric,\u201d Jeremy Weitz, communications director for the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, stated in an email to the Guardian. \u201cCo-opting this sacred season for such purposes is not only wrong, it is utterly contrary to the meaning of advent and Christmas. This is the time when Christians honor the Holy Family, who themselves were migrants seeking refuge.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked about the motivation for such posts and the criticism that they do not reflect Christian values, the DHS assistant secretary, Tricia McLaughlin, stated in an email: \u201c[The] DHS will continue using every tool at its disposal to keep the American people informed as our agents work to Make America Safe Again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson Lahmeyer, founder of the Pastors for Trump organization, said \u201cHO HO HOME\u201d is just trolling, which the \u201cTrump administration has done all throughout this first year, not just Christmas time\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI greatly support what our ICE agents and our law enforcement are doing in regards to removing criminals and protecting American citizens,\u201d said Lahmeyer, an Oklahoma evangelical pastor.<\/p>\n

Some other places do treat social media differently.<\/p>\n

This month, the EU fined X, owned by Elon Musk, \u20ac120m for violating its Digital Services Act<\/a>, which requires tech companies to provide a public list of advertisers to ensure that the corporation\u2019 structures guard against scams, fake advertisements and coordinated campaigns around political elections.<\/p>\n

Germany also has laws to prevent hate speech<\/a> on social media.<\/p>\n

And there are also different norms around political speech outside the United States, Donovan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn other countries, politicians, for the most part, don\u2019t behave in this way,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cAnd if they do, it\u2019s because they are learning from US politicians that it gets headlines and it gets results.\u201d<\/p>\n