Highly criticized since Donald Trump’s return to power, the communication strategy of the US Department of Homeland Security has once again been highlighted. For several days he has been using sequences from the video game Halo to illustrate the actions of his immigration police (ICE).
A vast advertising campaign in which the US government extols the merits of the ultra-repressive practices of its federal police, which tries by all means to arrest regular or irregular immigrants, at the same time as trying to recruit new people. A communication that did not generate any comment from Microsoft, which leaves fans perplexed.
cheap propaganda
In X we see publications that widely use images, but also the narrative of the video game saga. Halo. In it, the hero and humanity face a double threat: that of the Covenant, an alien race that seeks to activate space rings to destroy all life in the universe, and that of the Flood, an alien entity that feeds on living species to proliferate.
“Destroy the Flood”, “I’m finishing the fight” or even “We’re not done”, are many excerpts from the trailers of the title originally developed by the Bungie studio, then by 343 Industries, now used to perfect communication around ICE and its practices considered violent by many elected officials of the Democratic Party.
But what is surprising above all is Microsoft’s attitude. When the Trump administration used the Pokémon franchise for this same purpose, The Pokémon Company was, after a few days, shocked by the practice, lamenting an unauthorized use of its license. For Microsoft, however, it is radio silence.
The silence (complicit?) of Microsoft
The company, which participated financially in the inauguration of Donald Trump’s new term and seeks to insert itself sustainably into his administration’s plans, does not seem fazed that its historic franchise is today used for propaganda purposes. Contacted by specialized journalist Nicole Carpenter, Microsoft did not want to comment on the matter.
On social media, fans of the video game were surprised, even annoyed, by the absence of a position: “I would like to believe that it is only because they don’t know anything about it, or because they know and are talking to lawyers who told them not to talk about it, or because they don’t care, and I sincerely hope that it is not the latter case,” journalist Keith Mitchell reacted in Bluesky.
Others point out the lack of logic between ICE’s communication and the message sent by the saga Halo. Because as the hero Master Chief, the player must make sure to defeat the leaders of an alien people who use lies to impose their power, even if it means destroying all living beings in the galaxy. A scenario that is far from what ICE is, that is, a police force widely criticized for being the armed wing that Donald Trump attacks minorities…
Source: BFM TV
