Behind the scenes of online debates, armies of fake accounts—often called sock puppets—are deployed to sway public perception, especially during periods of political tension. These accounts, controlled by a handful of operators or organizations, flood social media with coordinated posts, hashtags, and comments, creating the illusion of widespread support for certain narratives while simultaneously overwhelming or drowning out dissenting voices. By leveraging bots and psychological profiling, these campaigns can rapidly amplify select messages, making them trend and appear organic. The deceptive nature of these tactics means that genuine grassroots voices are often sidelined, while orchestrated viewpoints gain legitimacy simply through their manufactured volume. This manipulation not only shapes public opinion but can also influence policy decisions and electoral outcomes. The true scale and sophistication of these operations remain hidden from most users, making it essential to question the origins of viral campaigns and seemingly unanimous viewpoints. For a deeper dive into how these shadowy tactics operate, listeners are urged to check out the relevant podcast episodes for the full story.