Social networks such as Facebook and MySpace are threatening the army’s PR tactics in Afghanistan and Iraq – as the war is being criticized both by users and soldiers. The British government has launched a new PR campaign that aims to revamp its image in the social media.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has issued warnings for “more discipline” and “greater enforcement” of military regulations regarding “the publishing of unauthorized content on unofficial channels.”

In a separate report entitled "Defence On-line Engagement Strategy,” the MoD outlines a strategy to use new media for its own purposes.

“We need to exploit the many emerging channels and take advantage of their being increasingly trusted. We also need to get our messages direct to the public without going through potentially distorting media,” said one of the papers.

Users will need to take extra care when reading blogs and other new media once considered independent. This point resembles a current discussion board on IJNet.org:

“In countries with heavy press censorship, blogs and websites have become the preferred means for people to consume and distribute the news. Bloggers were initially succeeding in subverting government censorship, but now some governments have caught up with them and have actually been trying to launch blogs of their own.”

According to the MoD’s papers, this situation isn’t exclusive to countries where press censorship may be heavy.

Source: independent.co.uk – ijnet.org