Kent's manual arrives at a moment when the information dimension of the Russia-Ukraine war has generated an enormous volume of commentary but relatively little systematic analysis of what worked, what failed, and why. Drawing on the full arc of the conflict — from the information environment shaping the prewar period through the dynamics of the full-scale invasion — the book provides a structured account of how Russia, Ukraine, and Western governments have each approached information warfare, and what the divergences in their approaches reveal about their strategic cultures and objectives.
The manual format is deliberate: this is practitioner-oriented writing aimed at those who will design and execute information operations in future conflicts, not just scholars of the current one. Kent's experience in public diplomacy and international broadcasting gives him an unusually grounded perspective on the gap between strategic intent and operational reality in information campaigns. For analysts and advisers working on strategic communications, this is a rare book that treats information warfare as a craft requiring discipline, feedback loops, and institutional learning.
Cogitavi commentary
Kent's manual arrives at a moment when the information dimension of the Russia-Ukraine war has generated an enormous volume of commentary but relatively little systematic analysis of what worked, what failed, and why. Drawing on the full arc of the conflict — from the information environment shaping the prewar period through the dynamics of the full-scale invasion — the book provides a structured account of how Russia, Ukraine, and Western governments have each approached information warfare, and what the divergences in their approaches reveal about their strategic cultures and objectives.
The manual format is deliberate: this is practitioner-oriented writing aimed at those who will design and execute information operations in future conflicts, not just scholars of the current one. Kent's experience in public diplomacy and international broadcasting gives him an unusually grounded perspective on the gap between strategic intent and operational reality in information campaigns. For analysts and advisers working on strategic communications, this is a rare book that treats information warfare as a craft requiring discipline, feedback loops, and institutional learning.