The sun never sets on the British Empire. London’s dominion stretches across the world in ways infinitely subtler than the colonial mandate. In browsing Google News, I find an article by one Con Coughlin entitled ‘Iran is gearing up to attack Britain and the West.’ Of course, one of the foremost tools of the imperialist nation is manufacturing consent. The article, targeted at an equally imperialist nation, fear-mongers the possibility of atomic annihilation with ballistic missiles piercing Europe and ends with cryptic foreshadowing, gearing the reader to perceive the nation as an existential threat, one in need of cowing. He states, “Rather than pandering to ayatollahs, there now needs to be a major rethink of how we deal with Iran, one that takes full cognizance of the scale of Tehran’s hostile intent.”

Coughlin, with the typical revolting phenotype of an Anglo-Saxon mass-media mouthpiece of Capital, is no stranger to mobilizing his readers to take sides in an imperialist conflict. ‘Strike the heart of Russia and watch its resolve crumble’ is steeped with sinister undertones. “No one is advocating that the Ukrainians resort to committing war crimes… but a number of recent incidents suggest that Ukrainian commanders are no longer placed on them by their western allies, and are seeking to take the fight well beyond their borders,” so says an article with the subtitle “Putin has had no qualms about destroying Ukraine’s infrastructure. Let Kyiv do the same to the Kremlin’s.” His articles speak in apocalyptic tones of the coming fall of Russia, others on the weakness of China ‘facing internal revolt,’ any serious journalist would find themselves repulsed by the blatant sensationalism that characterizes every subtitle. Iran, China, and Russia are nearly all at the forefront of his articles.

This characterizes a greater trend in ‘pop journalism.’ China watchers and their ilk predict the downfall of totalitarian regimes, ranting about the perpetual crises that plague them. A video that recently circulated via Twitter analyzed the ‘hidden meaning’ of Xi Jinping having an extra cup of tea at a recent congress, with BBC even covering the move. Self-styled deserters from the DPRK fabricate fanciful stories about life in the Hermit Kingdom, functioning as frontmen for Western propagandists. Stories surrounding life in North Korea are easily falsified owing to the isolation of the country. It’s hard to confirm. Journalism that only deserves the front page of tabloids is instead broadcasted by some of the largest news outlets in the world. While the regime is admittedly and uncompromisingly authoritarian, much of what we hear of it cannot be confirmed, especially stories of the Kim Dynasty’s personal harem and modes of torture that would make the men at Guantanamo blush. Last year there existed a viral rumor that a coup d’etat was underway in China, grounded in baseless and conspiratorial rhetoric that captivated the West. This is nothing new. Papers like The Epoch Times, which one may recall running a painful-to-watch ad campaign on YouTube years ago, spread similar rhetoric, likely owing to the fact that the newspaper is directly tied to the Falun Gong, a cult banned in China responsible for baseless accusations of organ harvesting. ‘China Before Communism,’ does that subtitle ring a bell? Shen Yun? The Falun Gong is behind that too.

Disinformation spreads easily. It’s not that hard to spot it; larger-than-life claims that can’t possibly be logically consistent and framing countries that resist Westernization as an existential threat. Behind the idealist rhetoric of newscasters and NATO representatives, there always exists a cynical motive. Protecting Ukrainian democracy was never a reason for economic intervention. Articles from The Guardian, BBC, Vice, and other western news agencies before Putin’s invasion decried the country for its human rights abuses and the infamous neo-nazi Azov Battalion. You aren’t immune to propaganda. Capital is ruthless.

We aren’t going to war with Iran. Imperialist pundits want your consent, and they’ll get it if you aren’t careful. The most pervasive system of propaganda yet exists in Western democracies. In Iran, Russia, or the DPRK, you’re much more likely to know just how oppressed you are. The methodology there isn’t covert. Here, it is, and it’s much more dangerous than you could ever imagine.