Douglas MacArthur was actively engaged in crafting messaging for his theater. Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe had a very active psychological operations cell - its Ops(B) section did a masterful job designing and executing Operation Fortitude, the deception plan surrounding the D-Day invasion. At the time, psychological warfare was “defined as comprising the use of propaganda against an enemy, together with such operational measures as the effective use of propaganda may require.” Each theater commander had his own propaganda and psychological warfare programs. The Office of Strategic Services, the precursor of the CIA, had psychological warfare functions connected to military operations overseas and answered directly to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But the new office had lots of competition. To that end, he established the Office of War Information to coordinate the American propaganda machine. President Franklin Roosevelt realized early on that his nation had to be able to trumpet not only its lofty principles, but also its capacity to wage war. In World War II, “propaganda” was still an acceptable term and a necessary undertaking. However, for American forces there has always been uncertainty about exactly what tasks comprise information warfare, who executes them, and how they should be organized and synchronized. He refused an opportunity to jam reports of the location of his ships being transmitted to the Japanese high command, instead dooming them to destruction at Tsushima. In 1905, a Russian fleet commander engaged in a lengthy battle to gather and deny signals intelligence as he steamed towards Vladivostok. Otto von Bismarck was able to incite the French into a highly unfavorable declaration of war against Prussia in 1870 just by manipulating the reported text of one telegram. Advances in communication through the electromagnetic spectrum have further expanded the tools and possibilities in the field, with cyberspace just the latest addition. The battle over information has been a part of warfare from its beginning. For decades, the United States has engaged in information operations but lacked a unified understanding of the concept that is sorely needed to respond effectively to today’s adversaries.Ī Long History: U.S. This change would encourage decision-makers to think of information warfare in the holistic sense that has long eluded the service and the nation. The Army should learn from its own history and restructure Cyber Command into Information Warfare Command. Army field manual dealing holistically with information operations did not appear until 1996. Unifying those capabilities has always been a challenge, however, especially the technical and informational elements. Historically, this has been accomplished through various means of communication, psychological operations, media manipulation and disinformation campaigns, and, eventually, electronic warfare and cyberspace operations. Army Cyber Command now reads that it “integrates and conducts full-spectrum cyberspace operations, electronic warfare, and information operations, ensuring freedom of action for friendly forces in and through the cyber domain and the information environment, while denying the same to our adversaries.” Influenced to some degree by the integrated information warfare conducted by America’s potential adversaries, there seems to be a growing realization in the command about the unity of all operations in the electromagnetic spectrum - that is, the realm of digital and electronic communications systems and the information conveyed through them.Īt its core, information warfare is about gathering, providing, and denying information in order to improve one’s own decision-making while damaging the enemy’s. However, without any fanfare, a more important structural reorganization might be underway. Recently, the House and Senate have been evaluating Defense Department plans to set up a new Space Force.
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