They're realizing mainstream media is losing audiences, and influencers are easier to engage
In the shifting landscape where influence has become a geopolitical currency, a British television personality found herself at the intersection of personal brand and state power. Bushra Shaikh, a former Apprentice contestant turned entrepreneur, traveled twice to Iran in spring 2025 on state-organized tours, meeting senior officials and broadcasting regime narratives to hundreds of thousands of followers. A factchecking investigation by Factnameh concluded she had become a highly active vehicle for Iranian state propaganda — whether knowingly or not. Her story reflects a broader strategic turn by authoritarian governments away from traditional media and toward the more intimate, less scrutinized corridors of social media influence.
- Iran's state broadcaster organized two tours for Shaikh in early 2025, granting her escalating access — from cultural sites to foreign ministry officials — in what investigators describe as a deliberate cultivation strategy.
- Twenty percent of Shaikh's annual posts focused on Iran, generating millions of interactions at rates far exceeding her usual engagement, with timing that suspiciously aligned with key moments in the Iran-Israel conflict and domestic protests.
- Iranian digital rights activists and Women, Life, Freedom supporters condemned the visits, noting Shaikh appeared to enjoy internet access denied to ordinary Iranians and raising questions about potential sanctions violations.
- Shaikh dismissed concerns about internet shutdowns as temporary security measures, while continuing to post content that Factnameh characterized as unedited regime propaganda broadcast to a Western audience.
- Experts warn this reflects a calculated pivot by Iran — and other states — away from mainstream journalism toward individual influencers who are cheaper to engage, harder to factcheck, and more trusted by their audiences.
Bushra Shaikh, a Surrey-based entrepreneur best known for finishing ninth on The Apprentice in 2017, spent two weeks in Iran this spring on tours organized by the country's state broadcaster. She visited sensitive military sites, met senior government officials, and shared it all with her hundreds of thousands of social media followers. An investigation by Factnameh, an Iranian digital rights organization, concluded she had become a highly active instrument of state propaganda.
Shaikh's content had previously centered on fashion and commentary, but beginning in February her posts shifted dramatically toward Iran. She toured historic sites, posed on a boat in the Strait of Hormuz with a caption implying the waterway was closed to the United States, and modeled a scarf she said was a gift from Iran's culture minister. The Iranian government invited her back in April, this time granting her meetings with the governor of Isfahan and the foreign ministry spokesperson — a significant elevation in access.
Factnameh's analysis found that Iran-related posts made up 20% of her 4,047 annual posts yet generated disproportionately high engagement, with timing that coincided with the Iran-Israel conflict escalation, ceasefire negotiations, and nationwide protests. Some posts amounted to what investigators called unedited broadcasts of Islamic Republic propaganda.
Fereidoon Bashar of ASL19, which created Factnameh, explained the logic: 'They're realizing that mainstream media is losing audiences, and individual influencers are much easier to engage. The content they put out is more likely to align with state narratives, and less likely to be factchecked.' The decision to invite Shaikh back suggested the regime had measured her first visit as a success.
Iranian activists criticized the tours, noting Shaikh appeared to have internet access unavailable to ordinary citizens and raising concerns about sanctions violations. When questioned about internet shutdowns, she dismissed them as temporary security measures. She did not respond to requests for comment on the investigation.
Iran is not alone in this approach — Israel and Russia have both used influencers to shape narratives — but the sophistication of Iran's strategy, from identifying creators with large followings to measuring engagement before deepening access, points to a deliberate effort to route around the gatekeeping role that traditional journalism once played.
Bushra Shaikh, a Surrey-based entrepreneur who finished ninth on The Apprentice in 2017, spent two weeks in Iran this spring on tours organized by the state broadcaster. She visited sensitive military sites, met senior government officials, and documented everything for her hundreds of thousands of followers on social media. An investigation by Factnameh, an Iranian digital rights organization, found that she had become, in their assessment, a highly active instrument of state propaganda.
Shaikh owns a luxury clothing brand and has built a social media presence partly through appearances on British television programs like Good Morning Britain and TalkTV. Her posts typically feature photographs of her outfits and commentary on public figures. But beginning in February, her content shifted dramatically toward Iran. She toured an Armenian monastery, walked through Tehran's Tajrish bazaar, and posed on a boat in the Strait of Hormuz with a caption suggesting the waterway was closed to the United States. She modeled a black and gold scarf she said was a gift from Iran's culture minister. The Iranian government invited her back for a second tour in April, giving her significantly higher-level access the second time—meetings with the governor of Isfahan and the foreign ministry spokesperson.
Factnameh's analysis revealed a striking pattern. In the past year, Shaikh had posted 4,047 times on social media. Twenty percent of those posts focused on Iran, and these Iran-related posts generated millions of interactions at rates far above her typical engagement. The timing appeared deliberate: her posts coincided with critical moments in Iran's recent history—the escalation of conflict with Israel in June 2025, ceasefire negotiations, and nationwide protests in January. Some of her content amounted to what Factnameh described as broadcasting unedited propaganda from the Islamic Republic.
Fereidoon Bashar, executive director of ASL19, which created Factnameh, explained the strategic shift. Iran has long invited sympathetic Western figures to the country, he said, but the approach has changed. "They're realizing that mainstream media is losing audiences, and individual influencers are much easier to engage," Bashar said. "The content they put out is more likely to align with state narratives, and less likely to be factchecked." The Iranian government's decision to invite Shaikh back a second time suggested they had been pleased with her first coverage.
Shaikh's tours drew immediate criticism from Iranian digital rights activists and supporters of the Women, Life, Freedom movement. They noted that she appeared to have internet access that ordinary Iranians did not, suggesting her trips were facilitated by the regime. Some circulated an online petition calling for investigation into potential sanctions violations. When questioned about internet shutdowns in Iran, Shaikh dismissed concerns, writing that Iranians themselves seemed less bothered by limited connectivity than people outside the country, and suggesting the restrictions were temporary security measures rather than government crackdowns.
Shaikh is part of a growing category of content creators sometimes called "war influencers" or "war-fluencers"—people who offer followers direct, often unfiltered access to conflict zones. Several of her posts presented herself as documenting the ground-level effects of Israeli and American strikes on Iran, describing destroyed residential buildings and investigating a missile strike on a girls' school in Minab. It is unclear whether she paid her own expenses or was compensated for the trips.
The use of influencers for state messaging is not unique to Iran. Israel and Russia have both been documented using content creators to shape narratives, particularly as traditional media coverage has become less favorable to their positions. But the scale and sophistication of Iran's approach—identifying creators with large followings, providing access and gifts, and then measuring engagement to determine whether to deepen the relationship—suggests a deliberate strategy to bypass the gatekeeping role of traditional journalism. Shaikh was asked for comment on the investigation but did not respond.
Notable Quotes
They're realizing that mainstream media is losing audiences, and individual influencers are much easier to engage and invite. The content they put out is more likely to align with state narratives, and less likely to be factchecked.— Fereidoon Bashar, executive director of ASL19
It seems those outside of Iran are more bothered about limited internet access for Iranians to the outside world, than Iranians inside Iran themselves.— Bushra Shaikh, on internet shutdowns in Iran
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would someone with her profile agree to these tours? Is she being paid, or is there something else driving this?
The investigation doesn't establish payment, which is part of what makes it murky. But she has hundreds of thousands of followers and a brand to promote. Iran gave her access, gifts, meetings with officials—things that generate content and credibility. Whether that's compensation or just smart influencer strategy is hard to separate.
The timing seems deliberate—her posts about Iran lined up with major events. Is that coincidence or coordination?
Factnameh found it too consistent to be coincidence. Posts during the conflict escalation, ceasefire talks, protests. The pattern suggests either explicit coordination or that she understood what narrative the Iranian government wanted amplified and delivered it.
What's the actual harm here? She's posting her perspective. People can choose to believe her or not.
The harm is asymmetry. She had internet access ordinary Iranians didn't. She met senior officials. She was invited back because her first coverage pleased them. Meanwhile, Iranian activists were circulating petitions about her. She wasn't just posting her perspective—she was being used as a credible Western voice to legitimize state narratives to audiences who might otherwise be skeptical.
Why is Iran shifting toward influencers instead of traditional journalists?
Traditional media is losing audience trust and reach. Influencers are harder to fact-check, more likely to align their content with whoever gives them access, and they reach people through social platforms where misinformation spreads faster. It's a smarter play for a government trying to shape perception.
Is Shaikh aware she's being used, or is she just doing what influencers do?
That's the question no one can answer from the outside. She might genuinely believe in Iran's position. She might be cynically chasing engagement. She might not see a difference between the two. What matters is the effect—her content reaches hundreds of thousands of people and presents a particular narrative as truth.