‘Disturbing Potential’: Military Operations in Social Media Domain

Abstract

The author of the article pursues several vignettes drafted in the course of the military and academic discussions, related to the social media. Initial section of the publication is dedicated to the social sphere of the human nature. The reasons and motives inspiring people to create networks are investigated. The subsequent part provides a description of currently available social media platforms. The tools, their utility and basic characteristics are examined. Such summary is used as a framework to build few conclusions on the potential risks and opportunities, offered by virtual networks for the security community. Findings are consequently confronted with existing doctrines. Some structural assumptions are drafted within this section, in order to provide a conceptual point of reference for further research. The author than continues with selected case studies of the social media military application. The article is concluded by a few reflections encapsulating the role of non-kinetic, social media embedded warfare in the contemporary conflicts.

Keywords

• social media
• psychological operations
• information operations
• terrorism
• social networks
• military operations