FATE, TX – Just two months after Councilwoman Codi Chinn publicly posted an unredacted recall affidavit that included citizens’ names and home addresses, she now refuses to release a similar document that would reveal her supporters. Her explanation for the change, however, appears to conflict with information provided by city officials.

The dispute centers on an “Affidavit of Petitioners’ Committee,” the formal document required to begin a recall process under Texas law. The affidavit lists the members of the committee seeking the recall, including their names and home addresses.

Earlier this year, such an affidavit was filed to initiate a recall election against Chinn. According to records obtained by Pipkins Reports, Chinn received the document through her city-issued email account and later posted the affidavit publicly on Facebook without authorization or redacting the listed addresses.

The disclosure drew widespread criticism from residents and local observers who argued that publishing citizens’ home addresses could expose them to harassment or intimidation. A police report later named Chinn as a suspect in a possible unlawful disclosure investigation, a matter previously reported by Pipkins Reports.

Among the individuals listed on that recall affidavit were Andrew Greenberg and several members of the Fate City Council.

At the time, Chinn denied wrongdoing and defended her decision to publish the document.

The political situation in Fate has since flipped.

Supporters aligned with Chinn recently filed their own recall affidavit targeting Greenberg along with council members Mark Hatley, Rick Maneval, and Martha Huffman.

When residents asked on social media whether Chinn would again release the affidavit publicly, she declined and suggested there was a key distinction between the two situations.

“… there’s one big difference between the email we received from the city secretary when it was notifying council about my recall and the one notifying us about the recall for Greenberg, Hatley, Maneval, and Huffman,” Chinn wrote online. “One came without a confidentiality disclaimer and the other did. I’ll let you do your ‘investigative journalist work’ to figure out why that is.”

So, we did. To verify the claim, Pipkins Reports contacted Fate City Manager Michael W. Kovacs to ask whether the city had changed the language used in emails sent to council members regarding recall documents.

Kovacs said it had not. “All City originated emails have always carried the notice below,” Kovacs wrote in an email response.

The notice warns recipient that the message “may contain confidential and/or privileged information” and it cautions against copying or disclosing the contents if the recipient is not authorized.

In addition to the standard email disclaimer, Kovacs also noted that council members have long received additional guidance reminding them that although elected officials may view unredacted documents in their official capacity, they remain subject to restrictions on disclosing confidential information. The additional disclaimer says, “As Mayor and Council Members you are entitled to see any document of the city without redaction of confidential information,” Kovacs wrote. “However, you are also bound to the restrictions against disclosure of any information deemed confidential by the Public Information Act.”

Kovacs added that the city recently moved the confidentiality language higher in the email to emphasize the notice, following consultations with the city attorney during a period that included several recall petitions and open records requests. (ie: after Chinn disclosed the document)

Public records law and city policy

Under the Texas Public Information Act, most government records are presumed public unless they fall under specific statutory exceptions. The law requires government bodies to withhold certain categories of sensitive personal information, such as Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, financial account data, and some contact information. While a citizen’s name and address may appear in some public filings, many municipalities (including Fate) adopt internal practices designed to limit the disclosure of personal identifying information when documents are shared publicly. This includes the redaction of addresses of the public.

Opinion and analysis

The facts of the situation are relatively straightforward.

When the recall affidavit targeted Chinn, she had no problem releasing the document publicly on social media with citizens’ addresses intact. When a similar affidavit surfaced targeting her political opponents, the same kind of disclosure suddenly became off limits.

Chinn has attributed that difference to changes in the email disclaimer language. The city manager’s explanation suggests the warning language was not new, but rather long-standing. Only the prominent location of the language changed.

So it would appear that Chinn’s response is a case of political convenience.

Ultimately, voters in Fate will decide how they view the episode. But the unfolding recall battle has already delivered one clear lesson. In politics, the standard you apply to others often returns to test you.

### Pipkins Reports has requested a copy of the Affidavit of Petitioners’ Committee from the City of Fate. When received, we will provide that information to the public … redacted of course, as we did previously.

VIDEO

PENTAGON – United States Central Command released a new operational update on Operation Epic Fury. In a March 11 briefing, U.S. Navy Adm. Brad Cooper addressed the public with the latest details on the rapidly developing mission. Speaking on behalf of the command, Cooper outlined current military actions, operational goals, and the strategic posture of U.S. forces in the region. The update offers a rare inside look at how CENTCOM is executing Epic Fury, and what commanders say comes next as the operation continues to unfold.

Iran – The bombs started falling in the Middle East, and within minutes the internet detonated with something just as explosive, a tidal wave of fake war footage across social media.

Scroll through Facebook, X or Instagram and you will see burning U.S. bases. Iranian missiles blasting American jets from the sky. Satellite images of destroyed radar installations. Clever Iranian tricks of a painted airplane silhouette – supposedly humiliating the Pentagon.

Much of it never happened.

Since the United States began striking Iranian targets, the online world has been flooded with fake accounts, AI-generated videos, manipulated satellite imagery, and viral propaganda posts designed to shape global opinion about the conflict. Analysts say the scale of the deception campaign marks one of the first major wars where artificial intelligence is being weaponized at industrial scale in the information space.

Millions Watching Fake War

The misinformation explosion began almost immediately after the strikes.

Researchers monitoring social media say fabricated videos of the war have accumulated tens of millions of views before fact-checkers could intervene. Some clips claimed to show Iranian missile strikes destroying American aircraft or warships.

One particularly dramatic video circulating online showed an Iranian missile destroying a U.S. aircraft in midair. The footage went viral, racking up tens of millions of views, before investigators determined it had been generated entirely using artificial intelligence.

Other viral clips were not even AI. They were lifted from military video games.

A widely shared video claiming to show a U.S. warship shooting down an Iranian fighter jet was eventually traced to gameplay footage from the combat simulation game War Thunder. The clip gained more than seven million views online before being exposed as fictional.

Experts say the tactic works because viewers often encounter these clips in emotionally charged moments, when verification is the last thing on their minds.

The Fake Account Armies

The deception is not random.

Investigators have uncovered organized networks of fake or hacked social media accounts pushing fabricated war footage to millions of users.

In one case uncovered by platform X, at least 31 coordinated accounts were allegedly operated by a man in Pakistan and used to spread AI-generated war videos related to the U.S. strikes on Iran.

Many of the accounts impersonated journalists or eyewitnesses. Some posed as residents near battle zones. Others claimed to be military observers.

By pretending to be on-the-ground witnesses, propagandists can trick audiences into believing fabricated videos are authentic breaking news.

Researchers say this kind of deception campaign is increasingly common during international conflicts, where online narratives can influence global opinion as quickly as military developments.

AI Is Now Faking Satellite Evidence

Perhaps the most alarming development is the manipulation of satellite imagery.

In several viral posts circulating online, images appeared to show U.S. military installations destroyed by Iranian strikes. The images looked convincing, complete with blast craters and damaged buildings.

Investigators later discovered some of the satellite images were AI-altered or entirely fabricated.

One widely shared image, promoted by Iranian media outlets, claimed to show a devastated U.S. radar installation in Qatar. Analysts later determined the image had been digitally manipulated using artificial intelligence.

Experts warn that satellite images are particularly powerful propaganda tools because they appear technical and authoritative.

People tend to trust them without question.

Viral Claims Iran Is Tricking U.S. Satellites

Another category of viral propaganda has taken a different approach, mockery.

Images circulating across social media show large silhouettes of drones and aircraft painted onto the ground inside Iran. The accompanying posts claim Iranian forces created fake targets to trick American satellites.

The narrative accompanying the images is clear and deliberate. According to the viral captions, U.S. intelligence supposedly identifies the fake aircraft as real targets, allowing Iran to make the United States waste millions of dollars destroying empty patches of dirt.

The posts typically end with the same message, Iran is clever, the United States is foolish.

But military historians say the narrative leaves out a key fact. This never happened…the images are Photoshop or A.I..

The deception, to the viewers, is effective because decoys, camouflage, and deception have been standard military tactics for centuries. Inflatable tanks, fake airfields, and painted aircraft silhouettes were used extensively during World War II and are taught in military academies around the world. So the accusations seem plausible…and the fake images seal the deal.

The propaganda lies not in the existence of decoys, but in the framing designed to humiliate the United States and elevate Iran’s image.

State Actors Fuel the Propaganda War

Analysts say the information battlefield is being shaped by a mix of actors.

State-backed propaganda networks have circulated exaggerated claims about Iranian military success, while foreign influence operations have amplified misleading narratives to undermine confidence in American military power. Anti-semite groups capitalize on the opportunity to take swipes at Israel. Democrat operatives live for the opportunity to make President Trump, or Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, look like a fool.

Researchers studying the phenomenon say the goal is not always to persuade people of a single lie. Instead, the objective is chaos & uncertainty.

Flood the internet with so many competing claims, fake videos, and manipulated images that ordinary people simply stop trusting anything they see.

Opinion: America Is Losing the Information Battlefield

Facts first. Now the uncomfortable truth.

The United States may dominate the skies militarily, but in the information war raging across social media, the battlefield is far murkier.

Artificial intelligence has democratized propaganda. What once required vast intelligence agencies, professional studios, and technical expertise can now be created by anyone with a laptop and the right software.

The viral posts mocking American intelligence over painted decoys illustrate the strategy perfectly. A centuries-old military tactic becomes a viral story about Iranian brilliance and American incompetence.

The objective is not accuracy. The objective is perception.

Every fake video of a burning U.S. base, every manipulated satellite image, every anonymous account posting dramatic “battle footage” pushes the same narrative, America is losing, Iran is winning, and nothing you see can be trusted.

And when truth becomes impossible to separate from fiction, propaganda has already won.

The missiles may be flying over the Middle East.

But the real war for public perception is raging on your phone screen.