Information Warfare
What it is. Dominating discovery, curation, and distribution of facts and frames. Tools include censorship, narrative flooding, influence networks, platform governance, and synthetic media. The aim is to set the terms of reality so resistance seems fringe, costly, or immoral.
Chairman’s Fog
Domain: Information Warfare · Stratagems: 6, 8, 20
Problem / betrayal. Archives shift; defeats recut into “cunning traps.”
How it happened. State’s GEC special report documents PRC information manipulation—propaganda, censorship, data leverage, and digital authoritarian exports. State.gov.
The men behind it. Party media, platform rankers, front outlets abroad.
Consequences. The young learn a false map.
Warning. If you cede the record, you lose the future.
Counter-Orders
- Audit: mirror archives; capture takedown logs.
- Inoculate: provenance (C2PA) on official media; rapid rebuttal cells. C2PA.
- Isolate: deny state media front access to government ad buys.
Operating model
- Actors: state media, platform ops, influencers, cultural orgs, data brokers.
- Levers: moderation, amplification, agenda timing, fact-laundering, memetics.
- Mechanisms: seed → boost → normalize → institutionalize.
- Escalation ladder: framing → throttling → takedowns → deplatforming at scale.
- Success metrics: sentiment shift, issue salience control, opponent reach decay.
Tactic clusters (curated, non-repetitive)
1) Fabricated Gravity
Create weight around invented threats or virtues.
Stratagems: 7 Create Something from Nothing, 29 Tie Silk Blossoms…
Application: Stage glossy “successes” and menace stories; platform policies follow narrative momentum.
Countermeasures: Source transparency, independent KPIs, third-party measurement.
2) Deterrence by Example
Target a small voice to warn the many.
Stratagems: 26 Point at the Mulberry…, 10 Hide Your Dagger…
Application: Publicize penalties for minor infractions; others self-censor preemptively.
Countermeasures: Legal aid pools, mirror hosting, solidarity amplification.
3) Controlled Chaos
Confuse, then arbitrate “truth.”
Stratagems: 20 Trouble the Water…, 9 Observe the Fire…
Application: Flood with contradictory claims; later “fact-check” to crown preferred framing.
Countermeasures: Evidence hierarchies, time-stamped archives, adversarial review.
4) Benevolent Veil
Coercion presented as care.
Stratagems: 8 Repair the Walkway…, 14 Borrow a Corpse…
Application: Rebrand censorship as “safety” or “harmony”; critics framed as reckless.
Countermeasures: Narrow, auditable safety scopes; appeals; independent ombudsmen.
5) Agenda Seams
Time releases to bury or boost topics.
Stratagems: 6 Clamor in the East…, 13 Beat the Grass…
Application: Drop distracting stories near disclosures; probe reaction then decide escalation.
Countermeasures: Off-cycle disclosures, synchronized watchdogs, delay-resistant packaging.
6) Identity Capture
Bind narratives to group belonging.
Stratagems: 33 Sowing Discord, 11 Sacrifice the Plum…
Application: Offer token representation while centralizing editorial control.
Countermeasures: Community-owned channels, rotating editorial councils, viewpoint diversity metrics.
Failure modes & risks
- Backfire: censorship elevates curiosity and underground channels.
- Overfitting: narratives fail outside curated contexts.
- Leakage: whistleblowers and archives undermine manufactured histories.
Related: PsyOps, Cultural & Ideological Warfare.