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The New Reality: Communications as a Weapon
Every organizational leader must understand that strategic communications has evolved into a primary weapon of war. Unlike traditional military hardware, this weapon is accessible to any enterprise, regardless of its size, mission, or resources. This universal access creates a harsh new reality: if anyone can wield such a powerful weapon, every enterprise is vulnerable to attack. The critical question for leaders is, are you prepared?
Evidence from Modern Conflict
The idea that "strategic communications can be used as a weapon of war" is a rational fact, not hyperbole. Military and non-state actors alike demonstrate its power in contemporary conflicts.
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U.S. Military Doctrine: As early as 2008, the U.S. Army Central Command was prepared to deploy bloggers over the Internet just as it would deploy troops. The guiding premise was that "the battles of the present and near future are of words, narratives and concepts." The U.S. Army War College library extensively covers this topic, underlining its seriousness.
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ISIS Propaganda Machine: The terror group ISIS provides a stark example of leveraging strategic communications. It has used social media for everything from recruiting fighters to publicizing violent attacks, running a propaganda war described by analysts as more sophisticated than anything seen from previous combatants.
Asymmetrical Threats and Universal Vulnerability
In a communications battle, the opposing sides often have asymmetrical resources. An established enterprise may possess far more resources than a small group of antagonists, yet it remains highly vulnerable. These antagonists can launch a communications campaign against an organization for any reason—a competitive motive, a passionately held belief, or even a dislike for a charitable donation.
Once the attack is launched, the cause is irrelevant. The reality is that the organization is under a persistent assault, and the risk of significant, long-lasting damage is very real.
A New Mandate for Organizational Readiness
This emerging threat will soon become a standard part of every well-run organization's risk management strategy. As more evidence mounts that strategic communications warfare is a risk for every organization, all leaders will adopt an attitude similar to that of military commanders.
They must accept the new reality that their organization can be attacked at any time by an unknown antagonist with few resources. To survive and thrive, every enterprise must develop strategic communications as a critical capability.
This involves two key functions:
- Offensive Use: Proactively and continuously asserting the organization's critical messages.
- Defensive Use: Being perpetually ready to defend the organization's reputation and maintain supporter trust when attacked by an antagonist who operates without rules. '''