StratCom Podcast

#StratComPodcast / S2E4: Surviving in the digital jungle: how open source research fights disinformation

Today's digital information environment is a real jungle full of disinformation traps set to confuse, mislead and scare. While democratic society aims to build its institutions based on objective truth, malicious actors are always present spreading false narratives and mixing up facts to undermine public trust in democratic institutions, deepen unhealthy polarization and gain geopolitical influence by affecting the trust in military and governmental institutions and their actions. How can open source research be useful in identifying, exposing and explaining where and when disinformation occurs and creating a new model of expertise adapted for impact and real-world results?

In the 4th episode of #StratComPodcast Tomass Pildegovičs welcomes Mr Graham Brookie who is Senior Director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab) - the leading open-source research hub with a focus on governance, technology, security, social media, and where each intersect. By publishing what it can prove, or disprove, in real-time, the DFRLab is creating a new model of research and education adapted for impact. 

#StratComPodcast / S2E3: Is modern day democracy in crisis?

Modern day democracy has suffered a lot. It has been challenged in various aspects starting from government institutions unable to prove their value in modern day society to a changed media landscape facing a fundamental revision of values and acknowledging the shaky meaning of the freedom of speech in the context of the war in Ukraine.

In this episode #StratComPodcast host Tomass Pildegovičs welcomes a guest that played a fundamental role in strengthening the position of Latvia in the international arena during it's first decade after regaining the independence. Dr Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga is a former president of Latvia who served two terms from 1999 to 2007 and has played a leading role in achieving Latvia’s membership in NATO and the European Union. Madam President is outspoken pundit on social issues, moral values, European historical dialogue, and democracy, member of the Council of Women World Leaders since 1999. Since 2020 Dr Vīķe-Freiberga is a Board Member of the Club de Madrid and has served as its President from 2013 to 2019.

#StratComPodcast / S2E2: #StratCom and Modern Warfare

As information manipulation and propaganda in the digital environment has become an essential and highly effective tool of modern warfare, we have invited Jānis Sārts, Director of NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence to share his thoughts on the role of strategic communications in modern warfare and how this reflects in ongoing Kremlin's regime aggression in Ukraine.

#StratComPodcast is hosted by Tomass Pildegovičs, PhD Candidate at University of Cambridge.

#StratComPodcast / S2E1: What is #StratCom?

Today's digitalized information environment has given rise to various actors who use information manipulation to undermine trust in democratic institutions and deepen polarization. The very first episode of #StratComPodcast second season aims to determine what is strategic communications and why it is an essential aspect of global security.

Our first guest is Professor Neville Bolt, Director of the King's Centre for Strategic Communications (KCSC), Reader in Strategic Communications, Department of War Studies, King's College London and Editor-in-Chief of Defence Strategic Communications Journal by NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence.

#StratComPodcast is hosted by Tomass Pildegovičs, PhD Candidate at University of Cambridge.

#StratComTalks: Influencer Marketing - a legitimate communications channel?

Many commonucators have been thinking about influecer marketing, but does it go beyound just "selling things"? What those working with government comms have to be careful about when planning contracts and communications activities with influencers? What are the biggest risks and how to vet influencers in the selection process? At this session we look at the size of industry & speed of growth, define influencer marketing and correct misconceptions.

Mr Scott Guthrie is an independent influencer marketing consultant, conference speaker, guest university lecturer, top 10 PR blogger, and media commentator. He is co-chair of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations influencer marketing panel, a Public Relations and Communications Association council member, and an editorial board member of both Talking Influence and Influence publications. Scott has written chapters for five business books on the subject of progressive public relations and influencer marketing. His latest work Virtual Influencers: More Human Than Human is due for publication by Routledge in November in the book Influencer Marketing: Building Brand Communities and Engagement.

This conversation was livestreamed on 14 October 2020 on our YouTube channel.  

Conversation with Francesca Granelli about Disinformation and COVID-19

In this episode we have a conversation with Dr Francesca Granelli - a Teaching Fellow at King's College, London, and a political scientist and historian. Her interests span language, trust, and strategic communications, specifically in their use in historical and contemporary revolution.

This time we talk about an academic article that she co-authored for the academic journal "Defence Strategic Communications". 

Read the article "Disinformation’s Societal Impact: Britain, Covid, And Beyond" (authors: T.Colley, F.Granelli and J.Althuis)

Academic journal “Defence Strategic Communications” Volume 8

Music: Otomārs Krišjānis Kariņš

Does Microtargeting work?

This is a recording from the "Digital Communication Strategies" that took place in Riga, Latvia, on October 30, 2019.

Nathaniel Hill is the Head of Strategy at M&C Saatchi.

Everyone is talking about social media. But how do you differentiate yourself? How do you target the audiences you think you should be targeting? How do you measure your work? In this panel we discussed how to approach social media to be able to sustain results over the long-term, from strategy to tactics.

Moderator: NATO StratCom COE Senior Expert Sebastian Bay. 

China, soft power and hybrid warfare

A conversation between NATO StratCom COE expert Ben Heap and Prof Anne-Marie Brady that was recorded during the Riga StratCom Dialogue on June 12, 2019. 

Anne-Marie Brady is a Professor in Political Science and International Relations at the University of Canterbury and a Global Fellow at the Wilson Center. She is also NATO Partner State Director of the Small States and the New Security Environment (SSANSE) Project, funded by NATO-SPS.

Professor Brady is an expert on China’s domestic and foreign policy, polar and Pacific politics, and NZ foreign policy. She is author of 10 books and more than 40 scholarly papers on topics ranging from China’s modern propaganda system, foreigner-management in China, and competing foreign policy interests in Antarctica. She is also the executive editor of The Polar Journal.

Protecting Elections - A StratCom Podcast

In the first episode of the StratCom Podcast, NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence experts Guna Šnore and Sebastian Bay discuss election interference and how to protect elections.

Election interference aims to influence the outcome of an election, to undermine trust in the election, or to use the election to achieve other goals, such as undermining democracy, internal cohesion or influencing how a country is perceived externally. NATO StratCom COE has published a new report that focuses on election security. In it, experts create a roadmap for all those working on ensuring free and fair elections in democratic countries and their institutions in the future.