Media coverage of the Iran war has reached full telenovela levels of absurdity. One moment, audiences are told the “Baby Shah”, Reza Pahlavi, is on the verge of a triumphant return to Tehran.
The next, Kurdish “irregulars” - wait, is this 1914 or 2026? - are supposedly preparing to cross the Iraqi border in support of regime-change operations, as the Islamic Republic teeters on the brink of collapse.
Within hours, news emerges that the supreme leader has been killed, followed by a plot twist: his son and anointed successor is described, like a James Bond villain, as a horribly disfigured and vengeful cleric hidden from public view and ruling “from the shadows”, while maintaining vast properties in London.
Just when the storyline seems exhausted, another shocker arrives. An anti-Israel, populist former president, routinely described as a “hardliner”, suddenly appears in reports as Israel’s preferred alternative for Iran’s future.
At this point, it would almost be remiss not to reference the 1997 satirical film Wag the Dog, about a spin doctor and a Hollywood producer who fabricate a war to cover up a sex scandal, well before the Epstein files.
