This week, hosts Jim Ludes and Mark Jacobson welcome RAND's Jonathan Welch for a discussion of DOD requirements to get the most out of generative AI for U.S. influence operations.  Also, fallout from the Trump-Putin meeting comes in many forms: from waltzing polar bears to Putin whispering about election fraud all while Russian malign influence campaigns targeting the west continue.

This week, hosts Jim Ludes and Mark Jacobson welcome RAND's Jonathan Welch for a discussion of DOD requirements to get the most out of generative AI for U.S. influence operations.&nbsp; Also, fallout from the Trump-Putin meeting comes in many forms: from waltzing polar bears to Putin whispering about election fraud all while Russian malign influence campaigns targeting the west continue.

From the Pell Center at Salve Regina University and the creators of the Active Measures Newsletter, a weekly dive into the latest trends in political warfare, influence, and information campaigns. 

From the Pell Center at Salve Regina University and the creators of the Active Measures Newsletter, a weekly dive into the latest trends in political warfare, influence, and information campaigns.

A weekly dive into the headlines in the Active Measures Newsletter from the Pell Center at Salve Regina University.

The Active Measures Newsletter Podcast

AI for DOD Influence Campaigns with Jonathan Welch

On the first episode of the new year, Janis Sarts, Director of the NATO Strategic Communications Center of Excellence discusses the current information challenges facing the North Atlantic alliance, Russia's current use of these tools, and the transition from an ecosystem dominated by social media platforms to one dominated by artificial intelligence.  Hosts Jim Ludes and Mark Jacobson also highlight disinformation spilling out of the U.S. strike in Venezuela and the actions of the Trump administration to sanction EU counter-disinformation officials and researchers.

On the first episode of the new year, Janis Sarts, Director of the NATO Strategic Communications Center of Excellence discusses the current information challenges facing the North Atlantic alliance, Russia's current use of these tools, and the transition from an ecosystem dominated by social media platforms to one dominated by artificial intelligence.&nbsp; Hosts Jim Ludes and Mark Jacobson also highlight disinformation spilling out of the U.S. strike in Venezuela and the actions of the Trump administration to sanction EU counter-disinformation officials and researchers.

Alliance Strategic Communications with Janis Sarts

In June of 1953, civil disturbances hit East Germany--and the Eisenhower administration faced a choice: make good on the rhetoric of 'liberation' or adopt a more restrained approach.  According to host Jim Ludes, President Eisenhower and his team adopted the latter approach, restraint, seeking to exploit the uprisings for advantage in the Cold War without encouraging anyone to take needless risks or discrediting the protests themselves by endorsing them from Washington.

In June of 1953, civil disturbances hit East Germany--and the Eisenhower administration faced a choice: make good on the rhetoric of 'liberation' or adopt a more restrained approach.&nbsp; According to host Jim Ludes, President Eisenhower and his team adopted the latter approach, restraint, seeking to exploit the uprisings for advantage in the Cold War without encouraging anyone to take needless risks or discrediting the protests themselves by endorsing them from Washington.

In June of 1953, civil disturbances hit East Germany--and the Eisenhower administration faced a choice: make good on the rhetoric of 'liberation' or adopt a more restrained approach.  Ultimately President Eisenhower and his team adopted the latter approach, restraint, seeking to exploit the uprisings for advantage in the Cold War without encouraging anyone to take needless risks or discrediting the protests themselves by endorsing them from Washington.

Special Edition: The U.S. Response to the East German Protests  of 1953 with Jim Ludes

In this special edition of the podcast, host Mark Jacobson revisits the classic work of Edward Bernays whose 1928 book, Propaganda, argued that democracy required managed perception and was effective precisely because it bypasses conscious reasoning. Bernays wrote at a time when newspapers were the dominant form of communication, when radio and film were still nascent, but the clear implications of his work for our current world of algorithmically controlled media are numerous.

In this special edition of the podcast, host Mark Jacobson revisits the classic work of Edward Bernays whose 1928 book, Propaganda, argued that democracy required managed perception and was effective precisely because it bypasses conscious reasoning. Bernays wrote at a time when newspapers were the dominant form of communication, when radio and film were still nascent, but the clear implications of his work for our current world of algorithmically controlled media are numerous.

AI for DOD Influence Campaigns with Jonathan Welch

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