The Cognitive Crucible

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Dr. Josh "Bugsy" Segal asks the provocative question: Are We Losing the War? Josh discusses the importance of understanding the impact of the nation's investments in soft power assets and programs, emphasizing the need for a strategic approach and a broader national security context. He expresses concerns about the challenges in reaching the desired audience for information operations and the need for the US to adapt and innovate in the face of increasing influence from China and Russia. Lastly, the discussion touches on the current administration's agenda of cutting costs, the threat posed by adversaries, and the importance of nurturing relationships–particularly in the context of disinformation and subversive narratives.

Recording Date: 19 Feb 2025

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #213 Sviatoslav Hnizdovskyi on Countering Authoritarian Influence
  • #192 Josh "Bugsy" Segal on the American Maginot Line
  • #124 Dean Cheng on China, Space, and Information Operations
  • #24 John Davis on Modern Warfare, Teamwork, and Commercial Cognitive Security
• Deft9 Solutions
• Russia's GRU Unit 29155
• The DOGE website

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio:

Dr. Joshua "Bugsy" Segal is the Co-Founder & Vice President for Strategy and Innovation at Deft9 Solutions. A veteran of over 30 years in national security policy, strategy and operations, and intelligence, both military and civilian, Dr. Segal is an internationally recognized expert in arms control, countering foreign malign influence, and counter-WMD. Dr. Segal spent over a decade as a member of U.S. multilateral arms control delegations in Geneva, Vienna, and The Hague, including the negotiations to finalize the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention and establish the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. After leaving the federal government and then retiring from the military, Dr. Segal serves as an advisor to senior DoD leaders on operations in the information environment and teaches OSINT tradecraft.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Chris Greenway discusses the origins and evolution of BBC Monitoring, a service that gathers news from various sources. BBC Monitoring began in the 1930s as a response to the BBC's external broadcasts, with the initial focus on Arabic, Spanish, and Portuguese languages. The British government showed interest in monitoring, leading to a partnership with the BBC. By the height of World War II, the service had expanded to a thousand people and developed a relationship with American partners. Chris also discusses the significant role of open-source intelligence (OSINT) as well as products and services offered by BBC Monitoring.

Recording Date: 17 Feb 2025

Research Question: Chris Greenway suggests an interested student or researcher take part in a narrative assessment: have a look at Sputnik, or RT. What narrative are they trying to project to you? And can you "reverse engineer" those narratives to reveal the objective of the Russian government?

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #148 Kalev Leetaru on GDELT
• BBC Monitoring
• Sefton Delmer
• Black boomerang by Sefton Delmer

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Chris Greenway has worked for BBC Monitoring (BBCM) since 1981, helping the organisation's users to understand the world and threats to international stability through coverage of global media. Joining the service in the shortwave era, he first worked at its signals-receiving station, providing colleagues with feeds from radio stations and news agencies around the world. Two years later he joined the editorial teams who compiled the regional editions of Monitoring's daily newspaper, the Summary of World Broadcasts, working on the Soviet, East European, Middle East and Africa desks. That led to a total of eight years of postings to BBCM's outstation in Nairobi, monitoring Africa, interspersed with duties back at BBCM's UK HQ where he held various editorial and management posts. Since 2006, he has been part of a team coordinating the organisation's daily global operations and output. Chris combines his work with a personal interest in the history of, and current developments in, broadcasting, media monitoring and international information warfare.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Janne Riihelainen discusses the Information Operations Course funded by the European Union, which aims to enhance security by educating individuals on their role in providing security. Janne also expressed concern regarding the current cultural and political climate and risks related to uncertainty.

Recording Date: 17 Feb 2025

Research Question: Janne Riihelainen suggests an interested student or researcher study ways to identify good communication signals from the noisy information environment–especially as it relates to dialogue between the United States and the European Union.

Resources:

• EU Influence Operations Course
• Finnish National Strategy (Comprehensive Security)
• EU Cyber Citizen Initiative
• Joensuu, Finland
• EU vs Disinfo

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Janne Riihelainen is a non-fiction writer, communications expert and security policy columnist who has become known for his down-to-earth and accessible approach to writing about security policy. He is also one of the leading experts on information influence, training various actors to understand the current state of the information environment for their own operations. His book about security policy came out in 2017.

Janne's stories have been published in numerous civil and military papers. I am interviewed regularly in Finnish media and have also been interviewed by Politico, CNN, NPR and Foreign Policy.

Jannes is an active and prominent debater on foreign and security policy in social media. I have a rare combination of competence and prestige with freedom of saying out loud things. I am not tied to any political party or other organization.

He is a partner in an ad agency and involved in commercial communication. He lives in Joensuu, small town in eastern Finland. The border of Russia is about 50 miles away.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, John Cappello emphasized the importance of collaboration and sharing experiences in the Western United States to combat disinformation and influence social dynamics. He suggested several research areas, including the use of disinformation in the Western Balkans, the impact of disinformation on trust in institutions, and effective strategies for countering disinformation. John also encouraged interested students or researchers to reach out to him for potential collaboration. He recommended the book "Parting the Curtain" by Walter Hickson for a better understanding of the challenges faced in the region.

Recording Date: 11 Feb 2025

Research Question: John Cappello suggests an interested student or researcher examine the disinformation tactics actors use within the Balkan region and which strategies have been successful to counter these efforts.

Resources:

• Balkan Security Network
• Halyard Mission Foundation
• Parting the Curtain: Propaganda, Culture, and the Cold War, 1945-1961 by Walter L. Hixson
• Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History by Robert D. Kaplan
• Tim Judah
• Noel Malcolm

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: John Cappello, a 25-year veteran of the United States Air Force, is a founding partner and Chief Operations Officer of the Balkan Security Network (BSN). Specializing in defense and security issues, with a focus on hybrid warfare and information operations in the Western Balkans, his experience includes serving as Defense Attaché in Belgrade, Serbia, and U.S. Air Force Attaché in Tel Aviv, Israel. The Balkan Security Network specializes in defense and security information projects and disinformation analysis in the Western Balkans, providing fact-based news and analysis on these issues. BSN's content is published across the region. John is also the president of the Halyard Mission Foundation. Founded in 2015 the goal of the Foundation is to educate, commemorate, and increase awareness of the Halyard Mission, the rescue of over 500 US airmen during WWII, and the role the Serbs played in the success of the mission.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Brian Hamel discusses his 2023 Army Command and General Staff Theses entitled: Reframing the Special Operations Forces-cyber-space triad: Special Operations' contributions to space warfare. Brian delves into the complex and evolving landscape of modern warfare, focusing on the intersection of Special Operations Forces (SOF), cyberspace, and space. The "Triad" emphasizes the synergistic relationship between these domains to achieve strategic objectives. Those interested in military strategy, national security, and the future of warfare will enjoy this one.

Recording Date: 16 Dec 2024

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #124 Dean Cheng on China, Space, and Information Operations
  • #130 Teasel Muir-Harmony on Spaceflight, Foreign Policy, and Soft Power
• Command and General Staff Thesis: Reframing the Special Operations Forces-cyber-space triad: Special Operations' contributions to space warfare by Brian Hamel
• Army University Press Article: Reframing the Special Operations Forces-Cyber-Space Triad by Brian Hamel
• Supporting Warfare in the Indo-Pacific Through Space-Based Sustainment by Maj. Brian E. Hamel
• Bowen, Bleddyn E. War in Space: Strategy, Spacepower, Geopolitics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2020.
• Carlson, Joshua P. Spacepower Ascendant: Space Development Theory and a New Space Strategy. Independently Published, 2020.
• Drew, Jerry: The Battle Beyond
• Gallegos, Frank. "After the Gulf War: Balancing Space Power's Development." In Beyond the Paths of Heaven: The Emergence of Space Power Thought, edited by Bruce M. DeBlois, 63–102. Maxwell AFB, AL: Air University Press, 1999.
• Klein, John J. War in Space: Strategy, Spacepower, Geopolitics. New York: Routledge, 2006.
• Klein, John J. Understanding Space Strategy: The Art of War in Space. London: Routledge, 2019.
• Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space by Namrata Goswami and Peter A. Garretson

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Maj. Brian E. Hamel is a space operations officer assigned to the United States Army Special Operations Command at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. He is a graduate of the School of Advanced Military Studies, the Information Advantage Scholars Program, and the Red Team Leader course. Brian has multiple rotations to the Middle East and South America with special operations units. He has a Master of Art from Northeastern University, and recently wrote a thesis detailing special operations' contributions to space warfare as part of the Information Advantage Scholars Program at the Command and General Staff College, Kansas.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Jon Roginski and Stephanie Jaros discuss the strategic landscape for insider threat and workforce protection programs, emphasizing the need for a more holistic approach that considers both technical and human factors. They also explored the importance of balancing the use of analytics with human involvement in decision-making processes, and the need for organizations to be proactive in minimizing risks. Lastly, they discussed "Project Beyonce" and the importance of cultural development within organizations for workforce protection, and recommended groups for private sector involvement in security.

Recording Date: 15 Jan 2025

Research Question: Stephanie Jaros suggests an interested student or researcher examine: How do organizations not leak highly sensitive information? (For example: "Project Beyonce")

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #123 Jonathan Roginski on Insider Threats
  • #73 Ori Brafman on The Starfish, Spider, and Resilient Societies
• Workforce Protection: The Next Generation of Insider Risk Programs
• On the Right Track: Worker-on-Worker Violence ("Project Beyonce") by Stephanie L. Jaros, Katlin J. Rhyner, & Erik R. Gregory
• INFRAGARD
• Legacy: What The All Blacks Can Teach Us About The Business Of Life by James Kerr
• The Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio:

Dr. Jon Roginski is the Program Manager for the West Point Insider Threat Program, which serves as the "research arm" for the Pentagon-administered Army Insider Threat Program.

Stephanie Jaros is an insider risk expert with 15 years of experience in program design, implementation, assessment, and research across government and industry. Currently, she is a Visiting Research Scientist and the Lead Scientist for Personnel Security Research at the University of Maryland's Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence & Security (ARLIS).

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Sviatoslav Hnizdovskyi Sviatoslav discusses propaganda and disinformation in society and the challenges of discerning truth in the age of social media. OpenMinds' specific expertise lies in working with hard-to-reach regions, including occupied territories, closed platforms, and authoritarian or restricted societies.

Recording Date: 14 Jan 2025

Research Question: Sviat Hnizdovskyi suggests an interested student or researcher examine:

• What are the key motivational drivers behind the mobilization of Russian soldiers?
• How can we establish a link between changes in social media sentiment and real-world behavior?
• What are some effective approaches to measuring impact and outcomes of counter-influence campaigns?

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #62 Jonathan Rauch on the Constitution of Knowledge
• Openminds website
• Openminds: Russian Threat Index
• How to Win an Information War by Peter Pomerantsev
• Awakening from the Meaning Crisis by John Vervaeke and Christopher Mastropietro
• Zombies in Western Culture: A Twenty-First Century Crisis by John Vervaeke, Christopher Mastropietro, Filip Miscevic

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Sviatoslav Hnizdovskyi is a CEO and Founder of OpenMinds - a cognitive defence tech company countering authoritarian influence in the battle for free and open societies. Renowned for its ability to access hard-to-reach areas through technology and leveraging deep local expertise, OpenMinds collaborates with Ukrainian and NATO-member governments, leading communication agencies, and think tanks. In the past two years, OpenMinds has executed 380+ counter-disinformation campaigns and conducted over 55 research projects on societal resilience and effects of propaganda, with a particular focus on the Russo-Ukrainian war. The company's work has been featured in leading global media outlets, such as The Economist, CNN, The Times, The Guardian, and The New York Times.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Libby Lange discusses her recent article: Algorithmic Cognitive Warfare: The Next Frontier in China's Quest for Global Influence.

Recording Date: 9 Dec 2024

Research Question: Libby Lange suggests an interested student or researcher:

1. Take the concept of Algorithmic Cognitive Warfare from the hypothetical and theoretical into the real world and find evidence of Chinese researchers who are actually retrieving data from data brokers.
2. Investigate how Russia is pursuing adjacent or complementary Algorithmic Cognitive Warfare capabilities.

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #210 Paul Groestad on Cognitive Warfare
  • #187 Randy Rosin on Reflexive Control
• Algorithmic Cognitive Warfare: The Next Frontier in China's Quest for Global Influence by Libby Lange
• Decoding China's AI-Powered 'Algorithmic Cognitive Warfare' by Libby Lange
• Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP)
• Active Measures by Thomas Rid

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Libby Lange is a Director of Intelligence at the Special Competitive Studies Project. Prior to SCSP, Libby worked as an Intel Analyst at Graphika, where she focused on Chinese state-linked influence operations and public health misinformation. Prior to Graphika, she served as a speechwriter and communications manager for Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, accompanying the President on multiple state visits. Libby holds an M.A. in Global Affairs from Yale University and a B.A. in Political Science from National Taiwan University.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, Michelle Ciulla Lipkin, Executive Director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education, discusses the importance of media literacy in today's world, emphasizing its role in developing critical thinking, effective communication, and active citizenship. Michelle highlights the challenges of navigating the vast and complex information landscape, the need for community involvement in addressing media literacy issues, and the importance of supporting foundational work in this space. Learn about the complexities of the current media ecosystem, the shift from a consumer-centric to a participatory culture, and the challenges this presents for understanding and processing information.

Recording Date: 5 Dec 2024

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #107 Vanessa Otero on News Ecosystem Health
• National Association for Media Literacy Education
• Join NAMLE here
• Assessment: IREX Learn to Discern
• Journal of Media Literacy Education
• News Literacy Project
• Sam Wineburg's group, formerly Stanford History Education Group, now Digital Inquiry Group
• Invisible Rulers by Renee DiResta
• Growing Up Public by Devorah Heitner
• News Literacy Now, How to Read the News by Bobbie Eisenstock

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio: Michelle Ciulla Lipkin has served as Executive Director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education since 2012. Michelle has helped NAMLE grow to be the preeminent media literacy education association in the U.S. She launched Media Literacy Week in the U.S. now in its 10th year, developed strategic partnerships with companies such as Thomson Reuters, Meta, YouTube, and Nickelodeon, and restructured both the governance and membership of NAMLE. She has overseen seven national conferences, created the National Media Literacy Alliance for teacher membership organizations, and done countless appearances at conferences and in the media regarding the importance of media literacy education. Michelle was the recipient of the 2020 Global Media and Information Literacy Award given by UNESCO.

Michelle is an alumni of the U.S. Dept. of State's International Visitors Program (Australia/2018). She regularly serves as Adjunct Lecturer at Brooklyn College where she teaches Media Literacy. She sits on the Advisory Council for the ML3: Librarians as Leaders for Media Literacy initiative led by Project Look Sharp.

Michelle began her career in children's television production, in various roles on both corporate and production teams. She earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from New York University. Michelle focused her grad work on children and television where she caught the "media literacy bug". After graduate school, Michelle worked as a facilitator for The LAMP (Learning about Multimedia Project) teaching media literacy and production classes for Pre-Kindergarten to 5th grade students.

Her passion for media literacy education stems from a very personal place. Learn more about Michelle's story here.

When not thinking about media literacy, Michelle is either sitting at home in Brooklyn with her dog and husband, most likely reading, or at one of her kids' music gigs somewhere around the country.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.

During this episode, CDR Paul Grostad discusses the emerging threat of cognitive warfare, emphasizing the importance of information in modern societies and the potential for it to be weaponized. Until recently, Paul led Cognitive Warfare concept development for the NATO strategic warfare development command, HQ SACT, in Norfolk Virginia. NATO defines cognitive warfare as: the deliberate, synchronized military and non-military activities throughout the continuum of competition designed to shape the information environments and affect audience, attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors to gain, maintain, and protect cognitive superiority.

Recording Date: 29 Nov 2024

Research Question: Paul Groestad suggests an interested student or researcher examine:

1. How can we ethically gain situational awareness and monitor the Information Environment without negatively impacting values like freedom of speech and freedom of the press?
2. How can we effectively deter against non-attributable hostile acts in the Grey Zone, or below the threshold of armed conflict?
3. AI powered influence is on the rise, what are different ways to utilize AI to defend, counter or respond?

Resources:

• Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned
  • #33 August Cole on FICINT and the Cognitive Warfighting Domain
  • #180 Tanna Krewson on Cognitive Warfare
• Cognitive Warfare Products on the NATO Innovation Hub
• Cognitive warfare: a conceptual analysis of the NATO ACT cognitive warfare exploratory concept by Christoph Deppe and Gary S Schaal. (FYI: This report is an analysis of an earlier draft version of The Cognitive Warfare EXPLORATORY Concept, which was shared with nations for comments in April 2023. Significant review, analysis and experimentation has gone into the document since then.)
• Allied Command Transformation develops the Cognitive Warfare Concept to Combat Disinformation and Defend Against "Cognitive Warfare"
• "Data is the new oil" Clive Humby
• On Geopolitics:
  • New Cold Wars by David Sanger (2024)
• On the changing character of warfare:
  • The Dragons and the Snakes by David Kilcullen (2020)
  • New Rules of War by Sean McFate
  • The Weaponisation of Everything by Mark Galeotti (2022)
• On Russian Strategic Culture and Information Warfare:
  • The Russian Understanding of War by Oscar Jonsson (2019)
  • Unmasking Maskirovka by Daniel Bagge (2019)
  • The Story of Russia by Orlando Figes (2022)
• On Technology:
  • Our Next Reality by Alvin Graylin and Louis Rosenberg (2024)
  • The Battle for your Brain by Nita Farahany (2023)
  • Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson (1992)
  • Daemon by Daniel Suarez (2009)

Link to full show notes and resources

Guest Bio:

CDR Paul Groestad is a Norwegian naval officer with 30+ years experience in Signals, C4ISR, Cyber Operations and Information Warfare at all levels of the Norwegian Armed Forces and the NATO Command Structure.

His current position is with the Norwegian Ministry of Defense at the Department for Security Policy and Operations where he is desk officer for Hybrid threats and Malign Influence.

In his previous position at NATOs Warfare Development Command, HQ SACT in Norfolk, Virginia, USA, he was the Deputy Branch Head for Concept Development and led the project for NATOs Cognitive Warfare Concept.

He is a graduate of the Norwegian Naval Academy and Joint Command and Staff College, holds a Masters degree in Military Art and Science from the Norwegian Defence University College and a Bachelor's degree in Information Science from the University of Bergen.

His 2017 Master's thesis was on the topic of Russian Influence Operations.

About: The Information Professionals Association (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to exploring the role of information activities, such as influence and cognitive security, within the national security sector and helping to bridge the divide between operations and research. Its goal is to increase interdisciplinary collaboration between scholars and practitioners and policymakers with an interest in this domain.

For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

Or, connect directly with The Cognitive Crucible podcast host, John Bicknell, on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, 1) IPA earns from qualifying purchases, 2) IPA gets commissions for purchases made through links in this post.