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Is it true that the Israeli government is paying money to American influencers that promote pro-Israeli content?
Executive Summary
The available reporting shows that the claim has a factual basis: leaked documents and reporting indicate Israel funded a coordinated effort to recruit and pay U.S. influencers to publish pro‑Israel posts, sometimes cited as up to about $7,000 per post under a campaign labeled the “Esther Project,” with a budget near $900,000 for mid‑2025 activity [1] [2]. At the same time, key details remain contested: the identities of many paid creators, the exact legal structures used, and whether individual influencers received direct government payments or were paid through intermediaries and nonprofits are disputed by some influencers and not fully documented in public filings [3] [4]. This analysis summarizes the core claims, the documentary evidence reporters have cited, the legal and ethical issues raised by U.S. law (FARA) and advocacy norms, and divergent responses from implicated creators and firms [5] [6].
1. Leaked contracts and FARA filings that look like a smoking gun, but gaps remain
Multiple investigative reports cite contracts and FARA disclosures showing Israeli government‑linked firms hired communications agencies to run an influencer campaign and paid sums that allowed posts in the thousands of dollars each, with Bridges Partners and Havas named as contractors and Uri Steinberg listed as a registered foreign agent in at least one contract filing [3] [2]. These accounts portray the Esther Project as a time‑limited media push to generate 75–90 posts between June and November 2025 under a roughly $900,000 line item, and journalists have published internal documents describing payment caps and deliverables tied to creators’ posts [1] [2]. Yet reporting also flags missing links: many individual creators are unnamed in public filings, and some documentation lists intermediaries and nonprofits rather than direct payments from an overseas government, leaving room for interpretation about who was paid, how, and whether disclosure obligations were met [3].
2. Influencer denials and equivocations — personal testimony complicates the record
Some influencers publicly denied taking Israeli government money or said their pro‑Israel content was unpaid advocacy, creating a direct contradiction with leaked claims and filings; Lizzy Savetsky, for example, insisted she never accepted government funds and described her advocacy as personal sacrifice rather than paid work [4]. These denials complicate the narrative because public-facing creators often operate with mixed revenue streams, receive travel sponsorships, or accept payments via third parties, which may not appear as direct government contracts in creator statements. Reporters note that the Esther Project documents list potential payments but do not always match individual influencer bank records or attestations, so partisan and reputational incentives can produce both over‑claiming by critics and categorical denials by targeted creators, leaving significant evidentiary gaps in the public record [3] [1].
3. Legal spotlight: FARA and the gray area of influence operations online
U.S. law requires agents acting on behalf of foreign principals in political or public‑relations activities to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), and enforcement has intensified in recent years; DOJ guidance and prior investigations illustrate how failure to register can trigger investigations and prosecution, especially when activity aims to shape U.S. policy or public opinion [5]. Journalistic accounts argue the Esther Project could fall within FARA’s scope because it targets American audiences with political messaging tied to a foreign government interest, while some firms and creators argue that discrete sponsored lifestyle or informational posts do not meet the statutory threshold. The legal analysis in coverage highlights a regulatory gray zone where influencer marketing, travel sponsorships, and issue advocacy intersect, and where intermediaries and contractors can blur lines that FARA is designed to police [5] [2].
4. The strategic context: why Israel would run an influencer campaign in 2025
Reports place the campaign within a broader Israeli public diplomacy and PR budget, described as millions globally and including high‑profile hires like Brad Parscale for strategic messaging work, framed as an effort to counter declining public support amid intense international scrutiny and shifting U.S. domestic opinion in 2025 [2] [6]. Coverage cites polling showing erosion of bipartisan support and rising calls within some U.S. constituencies for punitive measures, which Israeli officials and contractors reportedly sought to mitigate through targeted messaging aimed at evangelicals, conservative creators, and general social media audiences. This strategic framing explains the operational choices — allocating funds to creator content, arranging site visits, and commissioning AI‑driven campaigns — even as critics characterize the approach as propaganda or paid manipulation of public discourse [1] [2].
5. What’s settled and what remains unresolved for readers tracking the truth
What is settled: multiple independent reports, supported by leaked contracts and some FARA filings, document a coordinated influencer effort tied to Israeli government contractors with budgets and payment caps that plausibly match the $7,000‑per‑post figure and the $900,000 program number [2] [6]. What remains unresolved: who exactly received payments and in what form, whether payments breached U.S. disclosure laws in each instance, and how accurately public denials reflect private financial arrangements; reporters continue to pursue bank records, creator contracts, and agency invoices to close those gaps [3] [4] [7]. Readers should treat the claim as partly substantiated but incompletely documented: there is credible evidence of a paid influencer program organized by Israeli‑linked contractors, but the full map of recipients and legal consequences remains incomplete in the public record [1] [7].