War is surreal to those who aren't actually engaged in it. (including myself..)
And in fact, such surrealness, and the ability to "manage" perceptions around the world becomes a weapon in, and of, itself.
Information Warfare is probably the most powerful, and controversial, weapon we have in our arsenal. We've had propaganda before, both factual and deceptive, but the ability to globally impact the perceptions of people around the world has never had such impact and global reach...
It's heady stuff, and such a weapon demands close monitoring so that those who would abuse it are kept in check..
There are going to be points where we may not be sure what reality and what's "propaganda" designed to subvert the will of our opponents.
But given that the nature of the internet is the dissemination of information, both factual and deceptive, it will be fascinating to observe.
And you can bet that they will do the same thing just as the Serbs attempted to do in 1997 by severely editing some comments by the UN human rights rep, Louise Arbour, where they made it seem as if she were saying the UN actions in Bosnia were politically, and not legally motivated. Most savvy people could understand this was deliberate manipulation through clever editing, but some Serbs were apparently fooled.
The solution was to take all Serb TV and radio links "offline" so they could play their games any longer..
Hawk |
