First Published in 2004. Events in the Gulf Crisis of 1990–91 have highlighted the importance of the increasingly complex and difficult relations between Defence and the Media in time of War – especially in time of limited conflict when the well-being – let alone the security – of the home nation may not be affected. This problem has become especially acute given the growth of the new high technology media and its global spread and immediacy. The question of how to reconcile the competing demands for secrecy on the one hand and the public's right to know on the other is fast emerging as a major question of our times. In Brisbane during 3–5 April 1991, there was held what is believed to be the first ever International Conference on the topic of Defence and the Media in Time of Limited Conflict to look at this and other issues stemming from the problem. Jointly funded by the Queensland University of Technology and the Australian Department of Defence, the three-day Conference was a major success, attracting 160 delegates from Great Britain, the United States, Zambia, Papua New Guinea, Brunei, New Zealand, France, Indonesia and, of course, Australia. This volume publishes nearly all the papers delivered at this conference whose main focus was on post-1945 limited wars especially Vietnam, Northern Ireland, the Falklands, Grenada and the Gulf; all of which receive detailed analysis.

The first comprehensive study of the contentious issue of the public's right to know in time of war or limited conflict. The book traces the uneasy relations between the military and a generally unprepared and gullible media, from the Crimea to the present day. It shows how the advent of nuclear warfare has outlawed the nationalistic wars of survival of the past, and freed the citizen from his age-old obligations in time of war, able to make up his or her own mind on the merits of the situation. It is here that the battle lies, in the struggle for public opinion as a necessary precursor to war. This book details how the military discovered the secret of media and public manipulation in the Falklands, tested it in Grenada, and refined it in Panama before deploying it in all its glory during the Gulf. This book is essential reading for every soldier and journalist, or any student of military history as it points the way to the future.

American Defense Policy has been a mainstay for instructors of courses in political science, international relations, military affairs, and American national security for over 25 years. The updated and thoroughly revised eighth edition considers questions of continuity and change in America's defense policy in the face of a global climate beset by geopolitical tensions, rapid technological change, and terrorist violence. On September 11, 2001, the seemingly impervious United States was handed a very sharp reality check. In this new atmosphere of fear and vulnerability, policy makers were forced to make national security their highest priority, implementing laws and military spending initiatives to combat the threat of international terrorism. In this volume, experts examine the many factors that shape today's security landscape—America's values, the preparation of future defense leaders, the efforts to apply what we have learned from Afghanistan and Iraq to the transformation of America's military, reflection on America's nuclear weapons programs and missile defense, the threat of terrorism, and the challenges of homeland security—which are applied to widely varied approaches to national defense strategy. This invaluable and prudent text remains a classic introduction to the vital security issues facing the United States throughout its history and breaks new ground as a thoughtful and comprehensive starting point in understanding American defense policy and its role in the world today.

"What is the role of the British media in our perception of warfare? Are the impressions which we glean from war films, television news reports and newspaper stories reliable? What are the issues - practical and political - involved in bringing reports of armed conflict to our television screens? Are British military institutions fairly represented, and how are enemy forces portrayed? How are ideas of nationalism and patriotism incorporated into the presentation of war?" "These are some of the questions addressed in this new collection of essays. The book is intended to provide students and general readers with a concise introduction to the main arguments and issues surrounding war and the moving image media in 20th century Britain, as well as contributing new perspectives to this increasingly important area of debate." "Among the subjects discussed are: the media build-up to the Gulf War; representations of the First World War; reporting terrorism; British imperialism in film; transmission technologies and the news reporting of armed conflict; the meaning of war-toys and war-games; and postmodernism and military history."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This book examines the practices of actors involved in the media reportage of war, and the ways in which these practices may influence the conduct of modern military operations. War is a complex phenomenon which raises numerous questions about the organization of society that continue to challenge all those involved in its study. Increasingly, this includes the need to engage theoretically and empirically with the progressive collapse between the ways in which wars are conducted and the manner in which they are reported in the media. Drawing on the work of Erving Goffman, Military Media Management offers a distinctly new approach to our appreciation of the dynamic relationship between war and media; one that is fundamentally a product of social relations between those engaged in reporting war, and those conducting war campaigns. By exploring how and why the military manage information in particular ways, the text succeeds in providing a framework through which wider sociological investigation of this relationship can be understood. This book will be of much interest to students of military and security studies, media studies, war and conflict studies and IR in general.

This book applies the concept of mediatization to the contemporary dynamic between war, media and society, with a focus on the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). Since the beginning of the 21st century the IDF has undergone an intensive process of mediatization that has transformed the media into an interpretative grid for many of its military activities and increasingly utilized media to garner public support and construct civilian perceptions of conflict and security through media activity and strategy. This process can be divided into four distinct chronological phases in accordance with the operational challenges confronted by the IDF during this period, from the Al-Aqsa Intifada of 2000, through Israeli unilateral disengagement from Gaza in 2005, and the second Lebanon war of 2006, to the series of Gaza confrontations of 2008-2014. The work shows how the IDF’s media policy evolved from a narrow perception of its role, and separation between operational and media actions to a cohesive and coherently articulated media strategy that is increasingly intertwined with military action and operational strategy and a vital component of strategic military aims and objectives. This strategic stance has led the IDF to adopt a global media perspective using the most advanced new media platforms, designed to influence public opinion and improve national narratives, both in Israel and the international community. By applying the concept of mediatization to the Israeli case, this book fills a research lacuna and offers a new prism for the study of media-military relations in contemporary conflicts. The book will be of much interest to students of civil-military relations, strategic studies, Middle Eastern Studies, media and communication studies, sociology and IR, in general.

This research collection provides a comprehensive study of important strategic, cultural, ethical and philosophical aspects of modern warfare. It offers a refreshing analysis of key issues in modern warfare, not only in terms of the conduct of war and the wider complexities and ramifications of modern conflict, but also concepts of war, the crucial shifts in the structure of warfare, and the morality and legality of the use of force in a post-9/11 age.