By subtly influencing foreign media markets and disseminating sophisticated messages emphasizing the shortcomings of democracy, autocratic regimes have pioneered a new form of foreign policy. In an era of democratic backsliding, Western politicians and Big Tech firms should find this much more concerning than they do.
LOS ANGELES – As authoritarian governments increasingly turn to media operations and propaganda campaigns to influence global public opinion, the information sphere has become an arena of intensifying geopolitical competition. We have entered the age of what I call informational statecraft, defined as a government’s use of media and information tools to spread certain narratives and alter public discourse in support of its strategic goals.
LOS ANGELES – As authoritarian governments increasingly turn to media operations and propaganda campaigns to influence global public opinion, the information sphere has become an arena of intensifying geopolitical competition. We have entered the age of what I call informational statecraft, defined as a government’s use of media and information tools to spread certain narratives and alter public discourse in support of its strategic goals.