Propaganda: From Disinformation and Influence to Operations and Information Warfare

by Lukasz Olejnik

Overview

The book is a modern primer on propaganda—aspects like disinformation, trolls, bots, information influence, psychological operations, information operations, and information warfare. Propaganda: From Disinformation and Influence to Operations and Information Warfare offers a contemporary model for thinking about the subject.

The first two decades of the 21st century have brought qualitative and quantitative technological and societal changes, and the subject of information influence needs to be re-ordered. Now is the time.

The book explains the origins of the meaning and phenomenon of propaganda—where it came from and how it has changed over the centuries. The book also covers modern methods, including artificial intelligence (AI) and advertising technologies. Legal, political, diplomatic, and military considerations ensure that the material is covered in depth.

The book is recommended for security and cybersecurity professionals (both technical and non-technical), government officials, politicians, corporate executives, academics, and students of technical and social sciences. Adepts with an interest in the subject will read it with interest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040115138
Publisher:	CRC Press
Publication date:	10/02/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	284
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Lukasz Olejnik (LukaszOlejnik.com) is an independent cybersecurity and privacy researcher and consultant.

He holds a Computer Science PhD (INRIA, France) and an LL.M. in Information Technology Law (University of Edinburgh). He worked at CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research), and was a research associate at University College London. He was associated with Princeton's Center for Information Technology Policy, with Oxford's Centre for Technology and Global Affairs, with Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, and was elected a Member of World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Technical Architecture Group. Former cyberwarfare advisor at the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, where he worked on the humanitarian consequences of cyberwarfare. He advised on science and new technologies at the European Data Protection Supervisor.

He helps various companies and organisations, including with cybersecurity, privacy and data protection, and technology policy.

Author of book “Philosophy of Cybersecurity”. His comments appeared in places such as Financial Times, Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, El Pais, or Le Monde. He authored scientific papers, reports, opinion articles in venues like Wired or Foreign Policy.

Table of Contents

1. The concept of propaganda—the evolution of meaning, 2. Theoretical background: Information environments, and propaganda as modulation of information space, 3. Technological methods of digital propaganda and information operations, 4. Commercial propaganda and PR, 5. Norms, rules, international law—legality of propaganda and disinformation, 6. Political and state propaganda, 7. Propaganda and military affairs, war propaganda, and information warfare, 8. The end is near

Editorial Reviews

A thorough primer on a complex, modern problem with ancient roots. Propaganda is an excellent resource for anyone who wants to better understand the fight for influence.

— John Hultquist, Chief Analyst, Google Mandiant

Lukasz Olejnik has written a comprehensive, dispassionate and sweeping study of propaganda, one that reflects deeply and eclectically on the nature of modern information technology and how it is woven into society, politics and international relations. He argues persuasively that while propaganda has a long history, it is now possible on an unprecedented scale and with new precision, with implications for state sovereignty, free speech and democracy.

— Shashank Joshi, defense editor, The Economist

Lukasz Olejnik's Propaganda is a treasure trove of information on influence operations ranging from the 17th Century Catholic Church to AI bot armies and everything in between. Appropriately, the book sticks to the facts and provides a historical, technical, geopolitical, and legal perspective but without offering value judgments. Olejnik makes serious and complex subject matter approachable and entertaining.

— Arvind Narayanan, professor of computer science at Princeton University, author of AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can’t, and How to Tell the Difference

In today's global society, where streams of information flow constantly and easily, distinguishing truth from falsehood is challenging. This book uncovers the subtle games of propaganda, information operations, disinformation and cyber operations, showing how these powerful tools are used to manipulate society. Analyzing the various techniques of propaganda and information operations, the author refers to both historical events and contemporary case studies. Can you tell the difference between real information and fabricated narratives? How do states use propaganda to shape the perception of internal and external visions? Are we vulnerable to the invasion of disinformation in an era of digital chaos? These questions become crucial in the face of today's challenges and technological developments, where the boundaries between fact and fiction are blurring on our screens and in our minds.

— Maj Gen Karol Molenda - first Commander of the Cyberspace Defense Forces of the Polish Armed Forces

Lukasz Olejnik's new book offers an invaluable categorization—and dissection—of propaganda in an age of information warfare. Packed full of both technical detail and historical context, Olejnik deepens and expands our understanding of how propaganda can work. From online trolling to psychological deception, one of Europe's premier experts shows the dangers emerging from authoritarian aggressors and offers ways to counter them. For anyone interested in the battlefields of the 21st century, this book is essential reading.

— James Palmer, deputy editor, Foreign Policy

From the Publisher