Originally Posted by Cannoneer No. 4
Leaving aside the meta-issue of whether, in a democracy, national military PSYOP ought to target citizens--and I do not think it should (this is the task of civilian political leadership)--I'm dubious whether most unofficial "PSYOP Surrogates" have the effect they intend to.
My own sense is that they often appeal to themselves, and entirely misjudge the concerns, preoccupations, and discourse of "floating voters" on COIN and CT issues. As a result, they turn off at least as many of their supposed "target audience" as they appeal to.
I certainly know that students with no firmly fixed views, exposed to the typical array of milblogs (and, much more so, milblog supporters) come away much more alienated than sympathetic.
Far more effective nongovernmental public engagement, in my view, is represented by the SWJ approach, in which there is no overt political message to sell, and in which the airing of an array of views is tolerated and even promoted. The net result is a far more thoughtful (and ultimately credible and productive) airing of the issues around Iraq, Afghanistan, the GWoT, etc. than one finds anywhere else.
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