American-supported influence operations in Central America in the 1980s were generally successful. American advisors in El Salvador worked closely with their Salvadoran counterparts following the May 1984 election that brought a reformist administration to office. The Salvadoran army changed its character from a plutocratic institution preying on t

If influence means getting people to do things for us, it follows that we must first understand those we hope to motivate—their needs, beliefs, goals, myths. Everything. There is absolutely no substitute for constant study of your audience and adjustment of the means of influence as revealed by continual analysis: “You must know your target aud

with mechanical things. Clausewitz would probably shake his head at the American penchant for counting numbers of weapon systems and calculating trajectories as advocated by Jomini, while devaluing the human element in war Clausewitz viewed war as messy and chaotic, with the outcome shaped by courage, persistence, and luck. In contrast to Jomini, w

to restore psychological operations and the military information support operations mission to its rightful place in the pantheon of national security tools. Failure to act now will have long-term implications for the United States’ ability to protect its interests and counter the growing threats posed by adversaries who are increasingly leveragi