Social networking tools must be a core part of national defense, harnessing the power of communities of interest to collaborate and share knowledge to address a range of issues from analyzing intelligence data to post-war recovery initiatives, according to panelists speaking this week at the Open Government and Innovations Conference in Washington.
Social media software is being used by activists, businesses, governments and even criminals and terrorists worldwide and, as a result, cannot be ignored, panelists acknowledged.
“We have to find a place to make use of it,” said Linton Wells, a distinguished research professor with the National Defense University’s Center for Technology and National Security. He spoke on Tuesday during a session titled “Web 2.0 and National Security.” The conference was hosted by 1105 Government Information Group, the parent company of Government Computer News.
As an example, Wells noted how social networking tools are being used by organizations working in stressed environments to provide essential services to villages in Afghanistan. The effort is part of a global social network known as Sustainable Technologies, Accelerated Research-Transportable Infrastructures for Development and Emergency Support (STAR-TIDES).
STAR-TIDES uses social wikis, online photos, video and microblogging tools like Twitter to connect people who have problems with those who may have solutions. A social network such as STAR-TIDES provides a way for organizations to communicate, collaborate and engage with local populations, Wells said.
Because social software can add value to many ongoing missions, and because citizens, allies and opponents use the technology, panelists said the defense community needs to embrace social media responsibly.
Totalitarian regimes that do not want to give their citizens the right to petition government see the value of social networking tools as propaganda tools, said Lewis Shepherd, a former senior technology officer at the Defense Intelligence Agency and currently chief technology officer with Microsoft's Advanced Technology in Government.
Shepherd cited the recent elections in Iran in which the Iranian government used Web filtering software to block its citizens from access to Facebook. Later, the regime realized the potential of spreading anti-western propaganda through Facebook pages, which it set up through front groups, he said.
Social media software is being used by activists, businesses, governments and even criminals and terrorists worldwide and, as a result, cannot be ignored, panelists acknowledged.
“We have to find a place to make use of it,” said Linton Wells, a distinguished research professor with the National Defense University’s Center for Technology and National Security. He spoke on Tuesday during a session titled “Web 2.0 and National Security.” The conference was hosted by 1105 Government Information Group, the parent company of Government Computer News.
As an example, Wells noted how social networking tools are being used by organizations working in stressed environments to provide essential services to villages in Afghanistan. The effort is part of a global social network known as Sustainable Technologies, Accelerated Research-Transportable Infrastructures for Development and Emergency Support (STAR-TIDES).
STAR-TIDES uses social wikis, online photos, video and microblogging tools like Twitter to connect people who have problems with those who may have solutions. A social network such as STAR-TIDES provides a way for organizations to communicate, collaborate and engage with local populations, Wells said.
Because social software can add value to many ongoing missions, and because citizens, allies and opponents use the technology, panelists said the defense community needs to embrace social media responsibly.
Totalitarian regimes that do not want to give their citizens the right to petition government see the value of social networking tools as propaganda tools, said Lewis Shepherd, a former senior technology officer at the Defense Intelligence Agency and currently chief technology officer with Microsoft's Advanced Technology in Government.
Shepherd cited the recent elections in Iran in which the Iranian government used Web filtering software to block its citizens from access to Facebook. Later, the regime realized the potential of spreading anti-western propaganda through Facebook pages, which it set up through front groups, he said.
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