Any theories?
I was reading about it (muhahahahaa) when it occured to me that this would have to be the most pre-emptive form of warfare, so it seems odd how relatively little effort has gone into developing it, I mean compared to warfare itself.
Used to think so. But then I found out that in World War I, Britain already had its own propaganda bureau, which had lots of the famous great writers of the time in its ranks, people like H. G. Wells, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Their stories were probably full of propaganda.
Oh, yeah, and a substantial part of psychology is about how to manipulate people. There's a hundred years of experiments in almost every situation imaginable. As an example, the Millgram experiments would also be useful to understand how to make people kill people they think are innocent, and how far you have to push them, and how often it will work.
What are the objectives of psychological warfare?
To make you think that you are making your own mind up, to do exactly what your government and corporations want you to.
What strategies would achieve those objectives?
Mostly? Getting people to believe that some-other-group is stupid, delusional, and evil, so that when their governments say they have to go to war with these people, to free women, children, whoever, that you won't question further, such as why their governments mostly seem to invade countries that have something they want, and never countries that have nothing they want, but are doing all those horrible things to an extreme.
Great way to control a populace. Plenty of scientific research put into it too, and a lot of the science is really useful, if you want to control a populace.
What tactics would you use to conduct those strategies?
Mostly? Hype up your ego, and plant lots of suggestive sub-conscious messages. The messages are individually not that much of a deal. But, when combined with all the hundreds of others bombarding you, may not affect an INTJ with a strong will like yourself, but could easily convince the other 99% of the population to do almost anything. Push the ego in the direction people want to believe in, and they won't look back, because that will require them to admit they were foolish for believing in the ego-drivel in the first place.
So, you have to control the information providers, i.e. the scientists, the media, the schools, and the internet.
You can control the media directly, because they only produce things for money. But to do that, you have to get their bosses, the ones who run and own the media companies, on your side. So you'll have to offer them big bribes under the table, and lucrative media contracts. Probably have to arrange with them what news stories will be revealed in advance, as well, to give them the edge, so they look like they're always on the ball.
You can't control the scientists directly, because they are supposed to be impartial. So what you do, is establish many national academies of higher learning all under your government's control, and you ensure that you set up scientific funding to be done in advance, such as with a grant board. Then you simply ensure that on every board, at least one of the members of the board, in particular, the guy who is authorised to offer the funding on your behalf, i.e. on the behalf of the government and corporations, is being instructed by his superiors to follow your (plural) instructions. Then he simply only approves those grants that are going to encourage those sorts of ideas that would generate the kind of thoughts and feelings that would generate the actions that you want from the populace.
You can control the schools directly, because governments set the curriculum and oversee the schools, and so decide what your kids are taught, how, and by who.
The internet is much eaiser to control. Studies have been done into it. Simply pay a few thousands people to make tons of internet articles, forum posts and Youtube videos that make your point for you. You'll also need to have companies that pay people to scan online and other sources for voices of reason, to ridicule them and to ensure that their web pages get pushed to the back of any internet search. But it's chicken feed.
This will only work, when it comes from hundreds of sources, and in such ways as to be almost negligible and invisible to anyone looking for any one source.
You'll also have to start early. It takes years to program a populace properly, 10-20 years for the next generation. So you have to plan well in advance.
What technology would support those tactics?
Anything where the above can be accessed. Print, TV, radio, films, the internet. Especially the internet, as that stuff goes viral pretty quickly, and is way cheaper than paying for the others.
, the most bestest type. Have the enemy so confused that they cannot coordinate anything. Then take them apart as you see fit .
