Gretel Kahn reports for Reuters Institute:

War has never been fought only on the ground. Clausewitz’s concept of the “fog of war” once described the uncertainty and confusion that cloud battlefield decision-making. Errol Morris’ 2003 documentary made the phrase a shorthand for the moral and informational ambiguities of modern conflict. But in the digital age, where war is also filmed, edited and promoted online, the fog is getting thicker and wars, more difficult to cover.

The conflict between the United States and Iran makes this point clearer than ever. As images, videos, and narratives flood social media, it is now becoming even harder to tell what’s real and what’s not, with both the rise of AI and the changes in digital platforms reshaping how war is seen and understood.

This is not the first conflict after the launch of ChatGPT. But it may be the first one where generative AI has played a key role in the information war.

In 2026, AI-generated content has surged across social media, both in volume and visibility. Fake drone footage, fabricated satellite images, edited clips, and synthetic statements are spreading widely, often reaching millions of viewers.

In earlier conflicts, such as the early Israel-Hamas war, misinformation still relied more on recycled or miscaptioned real footage. Now, even official accounts are openly sharing false content. To understand how these narratives spread (and how to cut through them) I spoke to five investigators, researchers, and journalists working on the front lines of this treacherous information environment. [Continue reading…]