Evolving role of strategic communication in hybrid warfare: A case for India’s civil-military interaction
- Bihar Journal of Public Administration
- 19(1), Jan-Jun, 2022: p.39-46
The power of effective communication is well accepted. In the post 9/11 phase, the Bush administration started working on the concept of strategic communication, and soon it came out with three essential documents- ‘Information Operations and Psychological Operations’ (IO and PSYOPS); ‘Public Affairs’ (PA); and ‘Defense Support to Public Diplomacy’ (DSPD). These documents boldly outline the art of strategic communication to win the freedom of action through the reimagining of the perception framework. Later, the term was adopted by various other disciplines such as business management, public administration, political and public relations. For this study, the term is associated with the media engagement by the security agencies of India in the post-Balakot pre-emptive non-military surgical strikes. The paper analyses the achievements of Indian agencies when strategic communication was adopted. Finally, it strongly emphasizes incorporating strategic communication and perception management as an active defence policy to counter the emerging and traditional threats from different directions. – Reproduced