YouTube has removed a channel operated by a pro-Iran group known for producing viral Lego-themed AI videos that mock US President Donald Trump, the Google-owned platform said Wednesday, prompting online criticism.
Explosive Media, a collective of pro-Tehran creators who describe themselves as independent but are widely suspected of links to the Iranian government, has gained notoriety during the US-Iran war for animation videos that have amassed millions of views.
“We terminated the channel for violating our spam, deceptive practices and scams policies,” a YouTube spokesperson told AFP, without providing further details.
The channel was suspended on March 27, the spokesperson added.
Explosive Media continued to post videos mocking the US war effort on other platforms, including Elon Musk’s X and Telegram.
Meta-owned Instagram also removed the group’s account, according to US media reports, though another account under its name remained active on Wednesday.
Meta did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
Lashing out at YouTube, Explosive Media wrote on X: “Seriously! Are our LEGO-style animations actually violent?”
The suspension appeared to have limited impact on Explosive Media’s reach, with its videos still being widely shared by content creators on YouTube.
The satirical videos, which draw on American popular culture, caricature Trump with an oversized yellow head and portray him as an old, isolated figure prone to childish tantrums, seemingly disconnected from reality.
After a two-week ceasefire was announced last week, the group posted a video on X with the caption: “TACO will always remain TACO,” referencing the acronym “Trump always chickens out.”
Set to dramatic background music, the video depicts a Trump-like toy figure huddled with Arab leaders, hurling a chair at US military figures, while Iranian generals press a red button labelled “Back to the Stone Age,” unleashing a torrent of destruction across the Middle East.
Cartoonish video memes—amplified by Iranian diplomatic missions and pro-Tehran accounts on social media—are emerging as an effective tool in information warfare, a phenomenon analysts have dubbed the “Legofication” of conflict propaganda.
In recent weeks, viral meme videos have depicted fictional Iranian military victories, world leaders in subservient scenarios—dependent on Iranian leaders for oil—and even the strategic Strait of Hormuz reimagined as a cartoonish toll booth.
The English-language content of Explosive Media appears aimed at audiences outside Iran, where platforms like X have been blocked for years and are only accessible via VPN.
With Iranians facing what monitor NetBlocks calls an “internet blackout,” the group’s ability to produce and upload slick content has fuelled suspicion of ties to the Iranian regime.
The group has rejected the claim as a “media distortion.”
