Of course it's a psyop, and of course it's a backchannel comm. Couldn't be a good back channel without also being a multifaceted psyop.

But what the "fact" of whether it's "real" or not is is not very relevant. It's effective either way if the result is people waking up, thinking for themselves, being uncertain about the truth or falsehood of what they're being told, and being discerning. Action then is based in something different than herd response and is more based in truth and principle.