ICE is waging an “information war” on social media, TV, and radio. Washington Post reporters got access to thousands of chats and internal communications from the federal employees running public affairs for the Department of Homeland Security, and they found a taxpayer-funded media machine whose main goal is to go viral. 

Unlike previous administrations, the current DHS public relations machine has leaned into a media campaign that pumps out memes, satirical posts, and highly produced action videos. 

“There’s been a rush of new political appointees who are very hardcore MAGA, very aggressive in terms of what they think should be happening with immigrants in this country,” said reporter Drew Harwell. “And that’s something that has obviously been carried over into the social media posts that we’ve all been able to see out in public.” 

Harwell also found a multi-million dollar push to recruit agents who might be less concerned with the law and more enticed by the prospect of rounding up human beings. 

*Note: Days after this interview, reporter Drew Harwell was laid off along with 300 of his colleagues—a third of the newsroom. The Washington Post, which is owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, cited financial reasons for the layoffs.

Featured image by Luis Luna (Photos by Michael Gonzalez, Stephen Maturen/Getty Images) 

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Episode Credits:

Host: Maria Hinojosa

Producer: Rebeca Ibarra

Editor: Fernanda Echavarri

Fact Checker: Roxana Aguirre

Engineer: Julia Caruso

Social Media: Luis Luna, Paloma Perez and Anhelo Reyes

Managing Editor: Fernanda Echavarri

Executive Producers: Peniley Ramírez and Maria Hinojosa