The Digester

White House posts video game style clips of Iran strikes as oil tops $100

Mar 11th 2026

As the US-Israel conflict with Iran enters a second week and oil tops $100 a barrel, the White House is publishing social videos that blend war footage with memes and video game imagery, prompting debate and coinciding with a high profile cabinet sacking.

  • The US-Israel war with Iran has continued into a second week with allies still scrambling to respond.
  • Oil prices have climbed above $100 a barrel for the first time since 2022.
  • The White House has uploaded social media videos of the Iran conflict that mix footage with memes, TV clips and video game imagery.
  • Those posts have prompted debate over whether the content amounts to the gamification of war and whether it is meant to drive online engagement.
  • Kristi Noem was sacked as a cabinet secretary in the Trump administration with a White House official calling it a culmination of her leadership failures.