Strategic Communications in a Globalized World

Strategic communications have been vital in winning the battle of perception for at least a century; today, this is a critical element of political and military success. RUSI is launching the Strategic Communications in a Globalized World project to generate international discussion and solutions.

The late Colonel Harry Summers liked to tell a tale familiar to many who served in Vietnam. In April 1975, after the war was over, the colonel was in a delegation dispatched to Hanoi. In the airport, he got into a conversation with a North Vietnamese colonel named Tu who spoke some English and, as soldiers do, they began to talk shop. After a while, Colonel Summers said: 'You know, you never defeated us on the battlefield.' Colonel Tu thought about that for a minute, then replied: 'That may be so. But it is also irrelevant.'

Richard Holloran, 'Strategic Communication' Parameters 37 (3), Autumn 2007

Much has changed since the US was embroiled in Vietnam, but the importance of perception and communication is as decisive as ever. Communication campaigns have been important throughout the history of military conflict. From the propaganda posters of World War I to Tokyo Rose, throughout the Twentieth century warring parties attempted to break the will of their opponents through the use of (dis)information.

Today the situation is even more complex. Conflict environments are no longer secure. Anyone with a mobile phone can now take pictures and transmit them on the internet, using the propaganda of the deed to promote their message. Al-Qa'ida mastermind Ayman al-Zawahiri publicly noted this, writing that 'More than half of this battle is taking place in the battlefield of the media. We are in a media battle in a race for the hearts and minds of Muslims.'

It is a battle that the West is losing. As Audrey Kurth Cronin has noted, the internet is the new leéve en masse, enabling Islamic radicals to mobilize large segments of disenchanted youth to wage jihad against the West. In Afghanistan it was noted by a special advisor to ISAF IX General David Richards that the terrorists’ 'greatest advantage is their ability to exploit the communications revolution and the public dependency on virtual rather than real experiences.'

This project will bring together experts from both sides of the Atlantic and beyond to generate an international discourse amongst UK allies on how to best implement strategic communications programmes. The project will distil best practice to help facilitate a more robust and integrated western approach to effective strategic communications.

The project will focus on three key areas:

The Cultural Context of Strategic Communications
Multiple Messages in a Globalized World
Military-Media Relations

For further information contact Research Associate Kate Clouston at katec@rusi.org or Dr Michael Williams, Head of the Transatlantic Programme at michaelw@rusi.org.