The White House has recently shared several social media posts about the US attacks on Iran using footage from popular anime and video games — an act that has drawn flak from makers for unauthorised use of their content.
Taking to X on March 5, the official handle of the White House shared a video with the message “Justice the American Way” that mixed brief clips from several pop culture media including the anime series Yu-Gi-Oh! and Dragon Ball Z with moments of attack on Iran.
This faced the ire of netizens who criticised the Trump administration, calling the social media managers behind the account “immature”. In tune with the video, some X users even compared the POTUS with a Sith Lord, a master of the dark side of the Force in the Star Wars universe.
The official X handle of Yu-Gi-Oh! issued a statement on March 11, condemning the video and denying any involvement in granting permission for their rights.
“It has come to our attention that a post on the White House’s official X account used footage from the anime series Yu-Gi-Oh!. This was made without any authorization from the rights holder. Regarding this matter, no one associated with the manga or anime had any involvement, and no permission was granted for the use of this intellectual property,” reads the statement.
The White House also posted an image with the slogan “Make America Great Again” on a picture taken from the latest Nintendo game, Pokémon Pokopia. The font appears to be in Pokopia style, while familiar Pokemon can be seen in the background.
The Pokemon Company issued a statement saying that they did not grant permission to The White House for using its IP for the post.
“We are aware of recent social content that includes imagery associated with our brand,” a spokesperson for the company told The New York Times. “We were not involved in its creation or distribution, and no permission was granted for the use of our intellectual property. Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda.”
In September 2025, The Pokémon Company confirmed that it was not involved in the Department of Homeland Security’s video that features the anime’s theme song and scenes in between footage of arrests made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The video shared by the Department of Homeland Security of the US government features an unusual mix of White House ICE operation footage with the upbeat Pokemon theme song Gotta Catch ’Em All, leading many to question why such contrasting content was paired.
At the end of the video, it also showed the arrested immigrants depicted as Pokemon cards, complete with their personal details and case information, adding another layer to the controversial mashup.
Another video combines images from US attacks on Iran with gameplay footage from the Wii Sports franchise. The clip opens with a start screen showing the name of the military operation, Epic Fury, with footage of the US troops attacking Iranian locations interspersed in between.
“War is not a game”, came comments from netizens lambasting the act, while the administrators dropped another clip using footage from the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. “The White House is really using clips from Grand Theft Auto in pro-war propaganda. Lol. We officially live in the dumbest timeline imaginable,” an X user shared.
At present, a war involving Israel, the United States, and Iran is currently ongoing, following a joint US-Israeli strike on February 28 that killed Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The conflict has since expanded into a regional war involving multiple Gulf nations and proxy groups.
