News- Middle East: Israel has initiated a multi-million-dollar public relations blitz aimed at regaining support from the conservative Christian community in the United States, as backing from this group has significantly waned following the onset of the genocidal campaign against the besieged Gaza Strip in early October 2023.

Documents indicate that the Tel Aviv regime has struck multimillion-dollar agreements with US companies associated with allies of President Donald Trump and evangelical networks in the hope of reviving its image and winning back support.

Israel has seen a decline in support from many of its traditional allies in the United States, and in order to avoid further divisions among US conservatives and evangelicals, it has begun investing millions in advanced digital and offline campaigns.

These efforts include recruiting influencers, focusing on churches, employing AI-driven strategies, and flooding platforms with targeted content.

As reported by Haaretz newspaper, Israel has implemented countermeasures that include agreements valued at $6 million. These contracts, signed in August, were made with Clock Tower X, a company owned by Brad Parscale, the former digital campaign manager for Trump.

The task involves generating 100 primary content pieces each month, along with 5,000 variations, targeting a goal of 50 million monthly impressions.

Around 80% of this content targets young Americans via platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. The campaign is distributed through Salem Media Network, a conservative Christian organization that owns more than 200 radio stations and websites.

Another campaign proposal, worth over $3 million, was submitted by Show Faith by Works, a company owned by Republican evangelical consultant Chad Schnitger.

The initiative seeks to address decreasing evangelical support by reaching out to churches and Christian organizations throughout the western United States. It emphasizes messaging that links biblical backing for Israel with pro-Israel perspectives. It includes assertions such as the idea that Palestinians chose Hamas, along with claims that they “celebrated the events of October 7” and provide “shelter to terrorists.”

The campaign plans to implement what the filings refer to as the largest geofencing initiative in US history. This effort involves digitally mapping every major church and Christian college in California, Arizona, Nevada, and Colorado during worship hours, using commercial data to identify and monitor attendees.

These groups, comprising an estimated eight million church attendees and four million Christian students, would subsequently be exposed to a concentrated stream of pro-Israel messaging.

A separate initiative named the “Esther Project” was launched in collaboration with the Washington-based consultancy Bridges Partners, led by former Israeli tourism attaché Uri Steinberg and Yair Levi.

This initiative, valued at $1 million, employs 14 to 18 influencers to create as many as 30 social media posts monthly across platforms like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X. In the past, a separate project allocated hundreds of thousands of shekels to bring right-wing American influencers to Israel.

Alongside human influencers, Israel is also utilizing AI technology. The Clock Tower X contract details a “Search and Language Operation” focused on search engine optimization and leveraging generative AI platforms like ChatGPT and Claude. The objective is to shape the way these tools approach queries and provide responses concerning Israel, Palestine, and the Gaza conflict.

Another agreement with SKDKnickerbocker, worth around $2.5 million, involves utilizing bots across platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube to extensively promote the Foreign Ministry’s talking points.

This includes the recruitment of five spokespersons to convey Israeli messages across various media platforms.

Source: Press TV