Up and Coming
USSOCOM’S JOINT PSYCHOLOGICAL OPERATIONS SUPPORT ELEMENT IS FILLING STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION GAPS.
The 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) identified gaps in a number of supporting strategic communication capabilities— including psychological operations. The policy document discussed DoD’s intention to close these shortfalls by properly organizing, training, equipping and funding these key capabilities.
In a bit of early, good news for the QDR’s senior stakeholders, the embryonic USSOCOM Joint Psychological Operations Support Element (JPSE) is up and running, and is on track to help the department bolster its readiness in the information part of its strategic communication mission.
STOP BAD GUYS FROM BEING BAD GUYS
A number of misperceptions about PSYOP have made their rounds on Capitol Hill and in the media since Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Allegations and counter-allegations about U.S. government payments made to Iraqi media to influence their reporting during the post-conflict phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, is one of several incidents dating back to the early 1990s which have created clouds of doubt, confusion and uncertainty about this mission.
Army Colonel Jack Summe, commander, JPSE, provided one insight into contemporary PSYOP. “We are trying to influence select foreign audiences to exhibit behavior that is favorable to U.S. government objectives,” he explained. Noting that a presidential decision directive and other U.S. policies and laws prevent the U.S. PSYOP community from influencing the U.S. population and the domestic and international media, he observed, “In the simplest terms, what we are trying to influence is the behavior—we want to stop bad guys from being bad guys, and to dissuade others from supporting them,” added Summe.
The JPSE is an increasingly important joint asset to achieve this objective.
TRANSREGIONAL CAPABILITY
JPSE was established at the direction of the 2004 Defense Planning Guidance, a supporting program decision memorandum, and other policy and program documents to fill a post-September 11 gap in higher level, transregional PSYOP capability. “Where a joint special operations task force is focused on a combatant commander’s [COCOM] contingency in a small area, we focus on issues which cross geographic COCOMs’ boundaries,” pointed out Summe.
Indeed, while the JPSE has working relationships with in-theater PSYOP task forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, and at CENTCOM offices in Qatar, its broader mission is to support USSOCOM’s commander, General Doug Brown, and DoD’s number one priority—pursue and win the global war on terror.
Activated in October 2005 as part of USSOCOM’s command structure, the JPSE has 110 funded billets for military and civilian personnel and is augmented by contractors. The element’s force structure includes senior government civilians and mid- and seniorgrade military officer (O-4 through O-6) and NCOs (E-6 through E-9) who have significant, proven joint PSYOP experience. “What I have is a cadre of extremely experienced, savvy, good quality PSYOP professionals,” reflected Summe.
JPSE is organized to provide the element commander with a wide-range of support to include administrative, legal, public affairs, research and analysis, and plans and programs.
One organization of special note is the National Capitol Region Division. The division is located in Washington, D.C., which enables the JPSE to better integrate its mission with interagency organizations and to more fully understand aspects of national policy which can be gleaned from the Department of State and other non-DoD actors.
“When we support General Brown’s global war on terror mission, we do it in concert with U.S. policy,” emphasized Summe.
PRODUCTS
Three common PSYOP products are a leaflet (used at the tactical level of an operation), and a radio broadcast or television public service announcement embedded with a message (employed at the operational or strategic level of a mission).
JPSE provides prototype products for the operational level of a mission—with an important caveat. “Our focus is a sophisticated, commercial-quality PSYOP product. We are not producing leaflets, or typical radio broadcasts, or billboards. We want to affect audiences at the cutting edge of technology. Whatever means an audience can receive to see, hear and internalize our message, we want to use that means and package,” said Summe.
Working by, with and through the interagency, partner nations and other entities, JPSE employs a variety of delivery means for product dissemination to include satellite television and long-range terrestrial radio. The element’s products which use these transmission media are created with in-house resources or through contracted vendors.
IN-HOUSE PRODUCTION CAPABILITY
The JPSE Product Development Branch’s 11 personnel are contractors, civilians and military servicemembers. These professionals provide the command with a capability to develop products to meet short-notice (about one week) or other situational requirements.
The branch has a wide range of competencies and experience in media technology and supporting programs that provide still photography, video editing and gathering, field sound gathering and editing capabilities.
Two representative branch members are a videographer and a graphics designer. Another member honed his skills at an advertising agency as a media planner prior to entering government service.
“We are basically an in-house production capability,” pointed out Army Lieutenant Colonel Doug Jordan, branch chief. “If someone has an idea for a PSYOP product, they would come in and say, ‘Here is my idea.’ We use our talent and our other resources to come up with a prototype or a concept, which is evaluated, and is put through deliberate testing and review. If we determine that it’s feasible, it meets the PSYOP objective and it is going to resonate with our target audience, we might go into further development. We may develop it ourselves or go to our contractor,” added Jordan.
Since its inception, JPSE has supplied products in support of task forces in Iraq and Qatar and have supported COCOM’s strategic information campaign. The element’s efforts have included cartoon animations and modified on-the-shelf products.
“If it’s a prototype for which I will need professional actors, a professional set or a professional location, I will go to my contractor,” said Summe.
The element has a standing contract with one vendor, SYColeman.
CURRENT TECHNOLOGY
JPSE’s stable of product media reflects the state of current technology. Whereas an earlier PSYOP unit’s storage room may have included banks of VCR tapes, DVDs and other media, the element is migrating to digital products. “My intent is to have everything on electrons somewhere on a hard drive—this will be cutting edge technology,” predicted Summe.
A further review of the branch’s equipment inventory reveals the element’s move in that direction. The branch uses Apple Macintosh products, centered on Apple Dual G5 platforms for both video and print production. “Domestically, while the media world has many systems which are personal computer [PC]-based, a lot of the high-end production is done on Mac-based equipment,” said Jordan. “The decision was made by the people here to get on the industry standard, and they wanted MacIntosh products. We do need some PC-based capabilities, and we do have some terminals which are PC-based,” he added.
JPSE and other PSYOP community units have a joint material system to manage their burgeoning collection of video, still imagery, audio, script, music and other assets. “Now we have all of these electronic assets. How to push them around the world? How do you find things?” Jordan rhetorically asked. The solution resides in the Psychological Operations Broadcasting System (POBS), which allows widely dispersed and deployed units and personnel to reliably meet the challenges of managing the community’s media assets. In January 2007, the element was scheduled to receive its POBS variant from the vendor VideoBank.
OTHER EFFORTS
SOTECH had an opportunity to view on an off-the-record basis, four prototype products which have potential for viewing by a transregional audience. The products’ purpose was to convey a message, much in the same manner as the “Just Say No” public service campaign conducted in the U.S.
Another electronic medium is a for-therecord, JPSE-sponsored program which successfully introduced a short-wave radio broadcast network into Afghanistan. This filled a critical information void in the nation left by the silencing of two-Taliban operated radio stations after the early stages of Operation Enduring Freedom.
JPSE also sponsors studies whose deliverables provide the PSYOP community with information that addresses culture and examines why someone within a culture would turn to violent extremism. “A lot of post-September 11 studies don’t get to that level,” opined Summe. “So JPSE took on the mission of asking, ‘How can we get certain elements of academia focused on the culture, the attitudes, the beliefs and the behaviors that are out there, and those things that we can present to them that would change them?,’” he added. The studies are conducted by U.S.-based institutions.
One study involved cataloging individual authors of extremist literature. “This was not an intent to influence…but an intent to take the study and receive information so that we know which direction we must go to better understand the culture. The next part was to ask, ‘How are they getting their message out?’ Of course, the answer was through the Internet and through propaganda. Additionally, we commissioned a study to analyze extremist propaganda, particularly associated with the Internet. The information we received helped us to better understand the language and symbologies employed by the terrorists,” said Summe.
THE CUSTOMERS AND THE REQUIREMENTS PROCESS
JPSE’s primary customers are the regional COCOMs. These warfighters typically submit their proposed PSYOP plan with its supporting products, termed a program for policy purposes, through a multi-tiered coordination and approval process.
A draft plan is submitted for review and approval to the Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Once the plan is approved by the Joint Staff, it is sent in parallel staffing to the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low intensity conflict in the Office of the undersecretary of Defense (Policy), and the Department of State. The latter action provides an interagency review.
After the undersecretary of Defense for Policy approves the program with its supporting plan, the secretary delegates approval for individual products to the COCOM.
This intricate process ensures that the PSYOP commander does not approve his own product. JPSE’s customers also includes deployed PSYOP forces, interagency organizations, partner nations and other entities.
CULTURE AND LANGUAGE
As the JPSE mission is focused on policylevel approved, foreign target audiences, SOF personnel proficient in foreign language and culture are the linchpins of the program.
When required, contracted, nativetrained, foreign language speakers supplement the element’s personnel. “Everything we put out is in the language of the target audience. It’s very rare that we use English as a medium to communicate with an audience,” said Summe.
Pashtun, Arabic and Indonesian, are among the current, most-popular languages that support JPSE’s mission.
MESSAGE
When asked what message, if any, he had to convey to industry or another group to help better understand JPSE, Summe elected to address the American people about a much broader topic.
“Psychological operations are a timetested and honorable activity. It’s not propaganda, it’s not lying, and it’s not deception. It is the application of relevant multi-media and culturally sensitive products to an approved foreign audience as a means to engender support for U.S. policy objectives,” concluded Summe. ♦