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Israel is trying to sway American sentiments through AI-written text messages

WBUR
Published August 6, 2026 at 9:03 AM PDT
U.S. and Israeli flags fly in Tel Aviv. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
U.S. and Israeli flags fly in Tel Aviv. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

In recent months, millions of Americans’ cell phones have been been flooded with texts asking questions about Israel. They come from a group called Friends For Peace, and are written with artificial intelligence. The push is part of a campaign bankrolled by government of Israel.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong Speaks with Maggie Severns, an enterprise reporter at the Wall Street Journal who has reported on the campaign and the group.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2026 WBUR