'Is this a joke?’: Centcom podcast mocked as Iran war drags on

The Pentagon has entered its podcast bro era, and viewers have widely derided its debut.

As the cost of the US-Israeli war on Iran spirals for American taxpayers, US Central Command (Centcom) launched its official podcast on Thursday.

The first episode of Inside Centcom pairs Admiral Brad Cooper, who leads the US command overseeing the war, with Fleet Master Chief Lateef Compton.

In the 12-minute episode on YouTube, Cooper jokes about stealing French fries from Compton’s lunch. The pair touch only briefly on the deeply unpopular war, now in its ninth month. Centcom turned off comments on YouTube.

The podcast looks like an attempt to reach young men who might one day fight Washington’s wars in the Middle East.