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Overview
Cyber influence is an ongoing source of power in the
international security arena. Although the United States
has an enormous cyber information capacity, its cyber influence
is not proportional to that capacity. Impediments to
American cyber influence include the vastness and complexity
of the international information environment, multiplicity
of cultures and differing audiences to which communications
must be addressed, extensiveness and significance of
contending or alternative messages, and complexity and
importance of using appropriate influential messengers and
message mechanisms.
Enhancing the influence of the United States in
cyberspace will require a multifaceted strategy that differentiates
the circumstances of the messages, key places
of delivery, and sophistication with which messages are
created and delivered, with particular focus on channels
and messengers.
To improve in these areas, the United States must focus
on actions that include discerning the nature of the audiences,
societies, and cultures into which messages will be
delivered; increasing the number of experts in geographic
and cultural arenas, particularly in languages; augmenting
resources for overall strategic communications and cyber
influence efforts; encouraging long-term communications
and cyber influence efforts along with short-term responses;
and understanding that successful strategic communications
and cyber influence operations cannot be achieved by
the United States acting on its own; allies and partners are
needed both to shape our messages and to support theirs.
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