The Media and the Military Commander

<p>Public opinion has been recognized as an influential force on the battlefield since Napoleon's days as a commander. Clausewitz refers to the triangle of power as the people the military and the government1. Clausewitz's insight from over 100 years ago holds truer today than ever before. With the evolution of the media starting in Vietnam commanders have had to face the challenge of directing the battlefield while a global audience watched. People now watch wars in real time. This pressure on the commander directly affects his ability to make timely and pertinent decisions. Knowing that the entire world is watching every troop movement and battle will cause some commanders to hesitate before committing themselves to action.2 Commanders are not allowed the leniency they once had as they orchestrated their battles. As technology has increased allowing satellite phones and television cameras with live feeds commanders have had to realize that the media is now a part of their battlefield and must be included in the planning and execution of operations.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p>