Course Syllabus. Strategic Communication to Counter Security Threats in the Disinformation Era (original) (raw)
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STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION IN THE FUNCTION OF NATIONAL SECURITY
Vojno delo, 2019
The concept of strategic communication has become a matter of topical interest in nowadays social relations. Strategic communication is referred to as an activity, a topic of theoretical study or due to planning and operation of organizational entities at all levels, from corporations to states and their alliances, with the concept still insufficiently defined. This paper analyses the concept, structure and forms of strategic communication based on a wide variety of scientific and professional literature. Also, the paper considers the implementation of strategic communication in the function of fulfiling national interests with a review of its role and effect on the defence and security system. The correlation between strategic communication and the hybrid concept of violation of national security has been made. The paper contributes to defining the concept of strategic communication and propose modelling and management of public opinion as a genesis of the implementation of the communication strategy.
Strategic Communication in Countering Terrorism
The concept of Strategic Communication, which is known to be implemented by competitive institutions in trade and economy to grow reputation and to reach customers by analyzing target audience, has become widespread recently and applicability thereof has been discussed in fields of national/international security, policies and countering terrorism. Using the term “Strategic Communication” in lieu of other different definition and concepts has obscured the nature and the scope of the term and gave rise to confusion. This confusion caused this concept to be directly perceived as soft power, public diplomacy, propaganda, information warfare and psychological operations. The purpose of this study is to define Strategic Communication, in the light of the studies and practices that are conducted at international level; to analyze fundamentals as to how this concept can be applied in countering terrorism. In this context, the application oriented main idea of the study is to suggest placing the Strategic Communication discipline to the focus of countering terrorism planning and execution stages and utilizing conventional kinetic components and capabilities (such as military power or police) as an auxiliary part of planning. This study is important in the sense of analyzing the concept of Strategic Communication, which is not sufficiently known although frequently discussed, in the scope of countering terrorism to shed light to future practices and studies and to prevent ambiguity, and that it offers suggestions as to how this concept can be applied. Key words: Strategic Communication, Terror, Terrorism, Political Terrorism, Countering Terrorism.
This workshop-seminar report is a product of the Centre of Excellence Defence Against Terrorism (COE DAT). It is produced for NATO, NATO member countries, NATO partners and related private and public institutions. It does not represent the opinions or policies of NATO and is designed to provide an overview of the referent COE DAT directed workshop-seminar activity. Part A: Academic Theory and Hypothesis 1. Communication and Counterterrorism in the Digital Age: Overcoming Outdated Approaches to the Information Environment, Dr. Cristina Archetti. 2. The two ‘New Blacks’: Social Media and Narratives and the Challenge of Measurement, Mr. Thomas E. Nissen, M.Sc., MA. Part B: Applied Methodology and Case Study 1. Comprehensive Psychological Operations (PSYOP) Assessment and Evaluation in Counterterrorism Efforts, Major Gregory Seese, Psy.D 2. Case Study: Counter Terrorism Communications in Somalia, Mr. Stephen Harley.
Transformational Strategic Communication: A New Paradigm fo r Counterterrorism Communication
2006
Note: These notes were not read as the talk, but only provided a guideline for it. There is therefore, some variance between the notes and actual presentation. Only those things said in both forms can be attributed to the “talk.” THANK YOU COMMENTS: 1. Thanks to introducer and organizers and to previous speakers. 2. Thanks to audience members including students, faculty, analysts and members of the Las Cruces community. 10/23/2006 2 3. Thanks to Dr. Chris Weaver for his tireless efforts at helping me to analyze various forms of political communication related to terrorism. 4. Thanks Dr. Mike Coombs for introducing me to the areas of government activity in strategic communication. In this talk, I will attempt to describe the historical nature of strategic communication (SC), why it is presently not working well, and what can be done to make it work. In doing so, I will cover the following topic areas: a) the history of strategic communication in general and in the United States speci...
THE NATO'S USE OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION IN COMBATING TERRORISM
Edited By: Banu Baybars Hawks & Lemi Baruh …, 2010
This conference proceeding is based on the Societies Under Siege: Media, Government, Politics, and Citizens' Freedoms in an Age of Terrorism international conference held at Kadir Has University, Istanbul in 2009. We appreciate all the support we received from Kadir Has University and our colleagues at the Faculty of Communications.
BULLETIN OF "CAROL I" NATIONAL DEFENCE UNIVERSITY
This paper aims to identify the best ways to support security actors in the process of promoting and pursuing their interests, through public communication. In this respect, we have considered it relevant to identify and present the forms of public communication most often used in the information environment for the purpose of influencing power games, and we have classified them into two categories: constructive and destructive, taking into account ethical aspects in terms of transmitter’s intentionality, as well as the whole set of effects that they produce on the security environment (direct effects – short term, and indirect effects – long term), on its dynamics, and ultimately on the world order. Following our analysis, we will have identified strategic communication (and the techniques derived from it) as the form of public communication whose whole set of effects generated suits the interests of the actor – transmitter, the citizen – as an exponent of international society –, ...
This paper analyzes the main themes and patterns used by Romanian communication programs on defense and security during the Ukrainian crises, from November 2013 until the ceasefire of September 5th. Acknowledging the change made in the Romanian leadership’s understanding of the security concept during the last 25 years of country’s transition from communism to democracy, the study found out that the narrative used by the Romanian institutions might lead to a new understanding on whose job is to protect the country in case of a military aggression. Currently. the bearer of this responsibility appears to be, for Romanians, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU) and the Romanians themselves, in this order. For the timeframe analyzed, for what is spoken and written in the media by the politicians and, afterward, re-represented by the general public (developed by opinion polls) it seems that for the military dimension, the security responsibility was somehow outsourced.
DETERMINANTS OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION OF IMPORTANCE TO NATIONAL DEFENCE AND SECURITY
Matica Srpska Social Sciences Quarterly , 2019
Strategic communication is one of the expressions of state power and represents an instrument in the political and security achievement of national interests. In the context of contemporary conflicts, it is an expression of hybrid action in the fields of information, media, the Internet and the entire spectrum of public diplomatic performances. It can have an offensive and defensive character. The main goal is to influence the public opinion and further move the focus concerning the public towards cultural values and eventual adjustment of the political system through the "reprogramming" of the political culture under the given objectives. Strategic communication is a planned and comprehensive activity of the organizational entity, which aims at achieving a successful and efficient interaction with the environment. Some of the elementary forms of strategic communication carried out to support the highest national goals, even in the areas of defence and security issues, are propaganda, public diplomacy, and interest communications (advocacy, lobbying). In this paper, the projection of strategic communication in the scope of propaganda, public diplomacy, and lobbying as determinants of strategic communication is presented by the content analysis and synthesis. A framework for strategic propaganda planning, a strategic approach to public diplomacy, and a lobbying strategy has been developed, with a basic proposal for modelling every listed strategic communication component. The paper contributes to the thesis that strategic communication aims at supporting the organization's mission. In the field of defence and security, strategic communication has one of the vital roles of supporting the achievement of the mission of strengthening the overall identity, the international position of internal cohesion and the unity of the nation, and the general readiness to respond to contemporary security challenges. Strategic communication represents a wide area of communication disciplines that combine different co-information areas, disciplines, and skills hybrid and inventive. Strategically guided propaganda, public diplomacy, and lobbying are certain areas of importance for the complete construction of "soft" power and support the construction of the "hard" power. The conclusion is that the planning and implementation of strategic communication through strategic determinants, such as propaganda, public diplomacy, and lobbying, must be meticulously studied and planned according to scientific and practice-tested postulates. In this way, it is possible that strategic communication strongly and significantly supports the function of achieving the organization's mission, which in the case of the state relates to its international position, resistance to contemporary, hybrid challenges of risk and threats, readiness for a defence, and, if necessary, offensive acts. This approach seeks to raise general defence capacities, thus turning the state into an unwanted opponent, thus achieving the effect of preventing and deterring possible aggressive action.
Effective Strategic Communications to counter Disinformation
2023
The origins of the term and practice of strategic communications can be traced to the 9/11 terrorist attacks when the US had to devise a communication approach for a radically reshaped strategic environment defined by the asymmetric terrorist threat. The American military pioneered and took up this approach 1 and Vincent Vitto, then chairman of the Defense Science Board Task Force on Managed Information Dissemination at the Department of Defense, coined the phrase 'strategic communication'. He defined it as 'coordinated actions, messages, images, and other forms of signaling or engagement intended to inform, influence, or persuade selected audiences in support of national objectives'. Vitto raised awareness of the importance of converging on a set definition not simply as a theoretical exercise but as a matter of government effectiveness. That is, unity of understanding can help unity of effort and preempt lengthy conceptual debates or, conversely, avoidance of strategic communications due to a lack of clarity. 2 A report of the Defense Science Board called strategic communication an 'interactive' process that includes (1) understanding the identities, attitudes, and cultures of the audience; (2) advising policymakers on the communication implications of policies and actions; (3) engaging in a dialogue of ideas between people and institutions with common interests; (4) influencing attitudes and behavior; and (5) measuring the impact of activities over time. 3
Countering Disinformation and Hybrid Threats: Recent Policies & Measures
China-CEE Institute, 2023
Amidst the rising concerns over the freedom of speech and press, the Czech government has made a step back. Giving up the intention to introduce the Action Plan on Countering Disinformation and cancelling the position of Commissioner for Media and Countering Disinformation, the political representation is sending a signal that the protection of freedoms is the primary value. Nonetheless, other steps indicate that the general line of the fight against disinformation will not be abandoned, especially if foreign actors are involved in the processes. The briefing analyses the recent policies and events in the field of disinformation and hybrid threats in the Czech Republic.