CASPIAN BASIN: PENTAGON WEB INITIATIVE SPARKS DEBATE ON BEST METHODS FOR WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS

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9/28/09

EURASIA INSIGHT

A US Defense Department Internet initiative is stoking a debate among
experts about whether the Pentagon is overreaching.

The $10.1 million Trans Regional Web Initiative (TRWI) aims to launch
a series of language-specific websites, including Russian, Chinese,
Farsi, Georgian, Armenian and Azeri. The Pentagon in early September
awarded the contract to build the new websites to General Dynamics
Corp. The websites will feature news and analysis that helps garner
support for US policies. Overall, the Defense Department wants to
establish 12 websites within the year under TRWI’s auspices.

Experts and observers believe the initiative hypothetically has
merit. But they are questioning whether the Pentagon, its contractors
and subcontractors have the expertise and deft touch needed to
make information inroads in areas where there are deep reserves of
hostility and suspicion toward the use of American military power. Many
experts believe that existing US government-funded mass media outlets,
specifically Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
(RFERL), have the capabilities and experience needed to achieve the
desired objectives.

"The initiative is not a bad idea in a general sense. But, given
the epic fail of the Pentagon’s previous attempts to do this, I just
assume it will be clumsy," said Joshua Foust, military analyst and
blogger. "It’s doubtful the Pentagon would allow these news outlets
[websites] to have editorial freedom and highlight US missteps."

Editorial freedom will be crucial if the new websites hope to gain
credibility among skeptical readers in Russian-speaking countries and
elsewhere. "People don’t point to serious conflicts of interest when
it comes to the quality of reporting from venues like RFE/RL or VOA,
both of which are funded by the US government.

Both, however, have long traditions of independence from any political
editorial control," Foust contended.

A senior staff member at RFE/RL reacted coolly to the Defense
Department initiative, stating bluntly that the US military should
"leave journalism to journalists." The staffer also suggested that the
Pentagon could better serve American policy objectives by developing
technology that prevented websites and other media from being jammed by
"repressive countries."

According to the original solicitation for the TRWI project issued
in October 2008; "The contractor will continuously research target
audiences, [and] salient information relevant to the target audiences
(such as language and probable disposition toward prospective website
features), using open-source material ? as it relates to proposed
website content."

The US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) will supervise the Web
initiative. Its effectiveness would be assessed on a quarterly basis,
the 2008 tender solicitation indicated.

In the opinion of two legal experts — Daniel Silverberg, counsel to
the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Col. Joseph Heimann, the
Senior Appellate Judge on the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals —
the Pentagon web initiative has the potential to do damage to American
public diplomacy. The TRWI initiative also rests on shaky legal ground,
Silverberg and Heimann suggest.

In a paper published in the summer of 2009, Silverberg and
Heimann said the TRWI plan could blur the line between Department
of Defense propaganda and Department of State public affairs
initiatives in a way that benefits neither government agency. "The
two departments’ missions, while overlapping, are distinct. DoD’s
mission is one of influence; the State Department’s mission is
one of relationship-building and dialogue," Silverberg and Heimann
stated. "The amalgamation of these tasks potentially undermines the
State Department’s efforts. At a minimum, it forces one to ask exactly
where does DoD’s mission end."

The paper, titled "An Ever-Expanding War: Legal Aspects of Online
Strategic Communications," appeared in Parameters, a quarterly
journal published by the US Army War College. Both Silverberg and
Heimann caution that the Pentagon should "seek new legal authorities
to undertake Internet-based communication."

"While it is possible to foresee a non-public affairs website
configured in support of ongoing military operations in Iraq or
Afghanistan, DoD’s appropriate role becomes significantly less clear
when a TRWI-sponsored website emerges elsewhere, where combat is not
taking place," the duo wrote.

Editor’s Note: Deirdre Tynan is a freelance journalist who specializes
in Central Asian affairs.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress