Defense Science Board to Study Impact of Google, Blogs, et. al.

Blogosphere Growth 03-06

The “blogosphere” has experienced 6000% growth since 2003, played a role in both reporting and aid coordination in the wake of terror attacks and disasters, and even birthed a whole genre called “MilBlogs” that are often penned by soldiers in the field. Which may explain why the Defense Science Board will conduct a study this summer on the military implications of Internet search engines, online journals and blogs.

Kenneth Krieg, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics and a former Defense Science Board member, requested the study on “Information Management for Net-Centric Operations” to help evaluate the implications of the information network boom. ”’Googling’ and ‘blogging’ are making their way into military operations at all levels,” Krieg wrote. “But the full implications of this revolution are as yet unknown, and we have no clear direction and defined doctrine.” Krieg called access to information and collaboration among those who play a role in these missions “the lifeblood of military and civil-military operations.”