On the day commemorating the role of journalists, while honoring the position of media and reporters in diplomacy and the need to strengthen their connection with the foreign policy apparatus, this article seeks to address the media's impact on the nature and shaping of the country's foreign policy from a new perspective: the theory of hyperreality¹. This phenomenon is not an abstract matter but a common subject of discussion among scholars and researchers of culture and politics in the modern world. This concept is also frequently described in the statements of foreign policy decision-makers, officials, and diplomats with phrases such as exaggeration, atmospheric manipulation, negative portrayal, media sensationalism, distorted image, and image-making, all defining a pervasive hyperreality. Over years of confronting domestic and foreign crises, including before and after the country's 12-day national defense against the United States and the Israeli regime, the Iranian audience has become well-acquainted with these terms. In this situation, we face hyperrealities that, through internal reproduction, can become a genuinely domestic hyperreality, subjecting the country to political and social turmoil. Therefore, the issue at hand is the challenging effect of communication, media, and digital technologies on the nation's foreign policy.

What is hyperreality? Jean Baudrillard's² theory of hyperreality is one of the most pivotal concepts in his postmodern philosophy, analyzing the state of reality in the age of media, technology, and consumerism. His theory warns that in the postmodern era, authentic reality has been devoured by a deluge of images, data, and media simulations. We live in a world devoid of a true referent, a world where the map precedes the territory and illusions are more tangible than reality. Accordingly, hyperreality is a condition in which the boundary between reality and simulation is blurred with the help of signs and artificial images. In this space, artificial and constructed signs and images appear so real that they seem even more real than authentic reality itself. This condition has features that objectify hyperreality. It is a stage where the substitution of reality occurs, and media images, digital models, or virtual experiences (like the metaverse³) are accepted as reality. Numerous examples of this can be seen in the transformations of the international system, such as the pretext of weapons of mass destruction created by the U.S. and Western media to invade Iraq. In the political sphere, the theory of hyperreality describes a situation where images, media narratives, and symbols replace objective reality and even influence collective decision-making.

Understanding this theory requires grasping several related concepts, such as simulation⁴ and signs⁵. The concept of simulation, or simulacra, in Baudrillard's theory means that in postmodern society, reality has been replaced by signs (such as images, media, advertising, and computer models). These signs are not mere reflections of reality; they construct a new reality that has no connection to the external world. In other words, we live in a world that is a simulation.

In a 2024 article in Contemporary Political Theory titled "Hyperreality and International Politics: Simulation, Spectacle, and the Blurring of War and Peace," Sophia Martinez, a researcher at Cambridge University, and David Chen, a professor at the National University of Singapore, explore the effect of hyperrealities on international politics. Martinez and Chen conclude that the concept of hyperreality provides a powerful tool for understanding the complexities and paradoxes of international politics in the 21st century. They warn that neglecting this phenomenon and continuing analysis based on traditional assumptions about a clear distinction between reality and representation will render us incapable of understanding the true nature of power, conflict, and cooperation in the contemporary world. They call for the development of new theoretical frameworks and research methods that specifically focus on the role of simulation, media, and the hyperreal experience in shaping global dynamics.

This article is significant for updating critical theory (especially Baudrillard's thought) to confront the unique challenges of the digital age in the international arena. By blurring the line between reality and representation, the phenomenon of hyperreality can have profound effects on diplomacy and foreign policy. The most significant key challenges posed by the dominance and pervasiveness of hyperrealities in foreign policy can be outlined as follows:

1. Crisis of Trust⁶ New global media can produce a plethora of conflicting narratives and false information, rendering the audience incapable of distinguishing reality. The loss of the audience's ability to critique and analyze can have many negative consequences. According to Baudrillard's concept of the death of the real⁷, he argues that in the age of hyperreality, "objective truth" gives way to simulacra, or copies without an original. In diplomacy, this can lead to mistrust of official institutions (such as the Foreign Ministry or state media) and even render diplomatic negotiations for peace or agreements ineffective. Numerous concrete examples can be observed, such as the contradictory claims of Russia and the West regarding Ukraine, which has trapped both sides in a cycle of justification, or the accusation of Iranian military aid to Russia, which was not feasible under our country's circumstances.
2. War of Narratives⁸ State or quasi-state actors, political groups, and even extremist and terrorist groups shape global perception by mass-producing symbolic narratives (films, fake news, deepfakes) instead of using factual arguments. In his theory of deconstruction⁹, Jacques Derrida shows that no narrative is neutral and every dominant power and actor abuses the "metaphysics of presence" (the presence of its own narrative as reality). Accordingly, the effect of this phenomenon on foreign policy, where diplomacy becomes a competition for narrative dominance, has been observed in many cases, such as the JCPOA agreement and its costs and benefits for the parties, or the U.S.-China rivalry in constructing narratives about human rights.
3. Erosion of Accountability¹⁰ In the space of hyperreality, actors can deny responsibility for their actions (like violating international law) by creating confusion. According to Ulrich Beck's theory of the "risk society," he warns that new technologies make the consequences of actions unpredictable and actors unaccountable for their destructive measures. Many examples of this can be seen, the most prominent being the targeted use of social media bots by governments and influence groups to spread fake news without the possibility of being traced.
4. Collapse of Traditional Diplomacy¹¹ Under the dominance of hyperrealities in diplomacy, traditional diplomacy based on closed-door¹² negotiations is called into question, as public opinion is prejudiced by hyperreal narratives. James Der Derian, in his theory of the virtuous war¹³, explains that communication technologies have virtualized the form and substance of diplomacy. As an example, one can point to the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA), which was deprived of public support in the West and in Iran due to contradictory narratives constructed in the media.
5. Hegemony of Hyperreality¹⁴ It is evident that in the world of hyperreality production, the actor with greater capital, technology, and broader communication capabilities can be the dominant power. Here, leftist critiques of great powers dominating the media (Hollywood, news networks) to impose their values as global reality, and either entice others to follow these values or brand active players as anti-value, are relevant. Edward Said, in his theory of Orientalism¹⁵, shows how the West constructs hyperrealities of the East to "other" it. In today's world, non-Western countries (like China) are forced to resort to creating competing hyperrealities and proposing ideas such as the Digital Silk Road¹⁶ project to counter this.

Political ideologies as victorious narratives, such as the political labels used by the U.S. and Western countries in the "war on terrorism" that became pervasive after September 11, allowed the U.S. government to turn the term into a universal signifier to justify any military action (from Afghanistan to Iraq). Meanwhile, few countries asked: what is the precise definition of terrorism? Baudrillard went so far as to believe that the war on terrorism was a war against an abstract concept, not a real enemy.

In Iran's political space, diplomacy, especially in sensitive cases like the JCPOA or nuclear negotiations, became a prime example of the media's production of a hyperreality from an Iranian diplomatic act. Domestic, foreign, and social media outlets blurred objective reality under layers of signs by constructing conflicting narratives.

What Should Be Done About Hyperrealities? Although some believe that the theory of hyperreality can overlook the positive aspects of technology and media—promoting a media-avoidance and technological de-linking that is inescapable in modern human life, and this criticism is somewhat valid—entering its world without understanding hyperrealities and their effects poses many threats to national interests and capacities. For this reason, the public perception of the system's officials regarding the production and dissemination of hyperrealities must be enhanced. In analyzing the foreign policy situation, recognizing hyperrealities can lead us to our goal, while a lack of such recognition can squander national capacities and domestic capabilities.

The challenges that the acceptance of hyperrealities can pose for governance are numerous and can even signal the dominance of simulacra in the country's governance system and its adverse effects. When in a society we witness the branding of politicians¹⁷ becoming more prominent than the actual performance of effective and positive duties, the role of virtual space and social networks intensifying, and foreign policy being transformed into a tool for X, Facebook, and Instagram shows, we must naturally accept that we will witness its side effects, such as the decay of public rationality, societal polarization, and mistrust in public and state institutions, including the foreign policy apparatus. In the midst of this, what is sacrificed is objective truth and rational dialogue. This is the very "death of the real" that Baudrillard feared. As Baudrillard said, in the age of hyperreality, politics is no longer about truth; it is about the production and control of images.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is compelled to devise a solution for the Western and Eastern hyperrealities constructed about the identity of Iran and Iranians. Of course, the solution cannot be based solely on emphasizing the production of negative and distorted portrayals or similar image-making products with the same nature as those from the target countries. This is because, firstly, the technology, capital, and scale of representation of hyperreal images of Iran are too vast to be comprehensively countered. Secondly, the problem of defining a unified and national identity to present a real image of Iran has always been a challenging debate internally.

Another point is that while finding a solution against Western-constructed hyperrealities, the diplomatic apparatus must also devise a response to the hyperrealities constructed in the foreign policy arena arising from domestic political rivalries and disputes. Numerous examples of these can be cited without needing to be listed. These challenges can create many risks in foreign policy and embroil the country's diplomatic apparatus in various endless and fruitless preoccupations. This is why our understanding and recognition of these hyperrealities are important.

Despite observing signs of the dominance of hyperrealities in Iran as described earlier, there is undoubtedly still some distance (albeit small) before today's Iranian society reaches such a state. The primary harm stems from the internal acceptance and reproduction of threatening Western hyperrealities against Iran and the miscalculations made in response to them. This is what must be remedied, preventing diplomacy and foreign policy from falling further into the abyss of hyperrealities formed against Iran.

Mohammad Javad Shariati, Senior Expert, Institute for for Political and International Studies

  (The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the IPIS)

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1. Hyperreality: The Persian equivalents had-vaqe'iat (acute reality) or abr-vaqe'iat (super-reality) also convey this meaning. The concept of hyperreality lies at the heart of many phenomena that have become common in recent years, including: Artificial Intelligence, Deepfake, and Post-Truth. "Post-Truth" was selected as the word of the year by the Oxford Dictionary in 2016 and refers to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.
2. Jean Baudrillard was a French sociologist and theorist of postmodernity and post-structuralism. He famously argued that the Gulf War did not take place, and the creators of the film The Matrix were inspired by his theories.
3. Metaverse: A three-dimensional, immersive virtual world where users can interact with each other using their digital avatars.
4. Simulation
5. Signs
6. Crisis of Trust
7. Death of Reality
8. Narrative Warfare
9. Deconstruction Theory
10. Accountability Erosion
11. Decline of Traditional Diplomacy
12. Track I Diplomacy
13. Virtuous War
14. Hyperreality Imperialism
15. Orientalism
16. Digital Silk Road: A Chinese initiative aimed at developing digital infrastructure and information technologies across the globe, particularly in developing countries. This project is part of China's Belt and Road Initiative and includes the creation of fiber optic networks, submarine cables, data centers, and other digital technologies. China's political objective with this plan is to strengthen relations with various countries, increase its influence in the technology sector, and compete with other global powers in the technological arena.
17. One of the negative consequences of the prevalence of hyperreality in societies is that politicians are transformed into brands through the aid of media and simulation. We witnessed this media-driven persona creation in the example of Donald Trump in the 2016 U.S. election. Baudrillard argues that today's politicians are simulacra—pretenses, simulations, facades, false representations, and masks or avatars—images that have no connection to reality. By relying on the persona of a decisive, wealthy builder from the reality show The Apprentice, Trump constructed an image that surpassed the reality of his business life. The hyperreality of this situation was the popular support that formed not on the basis of his political platforms, but on his media image. Even his false statements and "fake news" were accepted as part of this spectacular reality.