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Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs

By Jeralyn, Section War on Terror
Posted on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 11:51:41 AM EST
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Check out this news release from the Defense Department.

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research recently began funding a new research area that includes a study of blogs. Blog research may provide information analysts and warfighters with invaluable help in fighting the war on terrorism.

The study will include, but not be limited to, researching blog patterns:

"It can be challenging for information analysts to tell what's important in blogs unless you analyze patterns." ...Patterns include the content of the blogs as well as what hyperlinks are contained within the blog.

They even have a unique moniker for the blogosphere: "Information Battlespace"

"The fact that the web is a vast source of information is sometimes overlooked by military analysts," Kokar said. "Our research goal is to provide the warfighter with a kind of information radar to better understand the information battlespace."

The fine print:

The blog study is part of Air Force Office of Scientific Research's new Information Forensics and Process Integration research program recently launched at Syracuse University, Syracuse, N.Y.

[hat tip Patriot Daily.]

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    Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs | 17 comments (17 topical)
    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#1)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:27:14 PM EST
    Fom the DOD release:
    $450,000 in funding for the 3-year project
    Here are 145 conervative (sic) right wing blogs. Here are 134 liberal left wing blogs. Here's a few Humor blogs. Most of them make fun of the CinC. One really badass one called 'Simon and the Lefties' has the tagline 'Working to drive running-dog lackeys of the Imperium into the sea' (note to the Air Force Office of Scientific Research: This means you and your boss) And here is the motherlode , gawddang! It's a f*ckin' drecktery of all the buggers right out there for all to see on the world wide web fer gawdsakes. These people have no shame. Don't you guys have some unused capacity at Gitmo? There. I saved you guys 3 years. You can pop the check in the mail to the DNC for me, ok?

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#2)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:40:11 PM EST
    On second though, since Executive Order #13224 you guys should have the bank account number along with the branch # and transit #'s od the DNC imprest account, so don't bother with the mail ok? Just run a direct deposit this afternoon. That way it'll be there in time for Independence Day, from you guys...

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#3)
    by cpinva on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:43:51 PM EST
    darn edgar, you beat me to it! actually, i want the money (sorry DNC), i have some work to be done on my house. in a nutshell: we are watching you! so you better just watch out!

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#4)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:47:41 PM EST
    cpinva- I'll split it with you! We'll need it to make our getaway - you're right - they're probably onto us!

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#5)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:53:47 PM EST
    Maybe this means somebody will read my blog now.

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#6)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 12:56:45 PM EST
    Bob - yeah, the guys in black with the balaclavas and binoculars and wires in their ears hanging from the phone pole across the street...

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#7)
    by jen on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 01:20:46 PM EST
    I'm sure the Warfighter will find it invaluable to know all the different opinions that emerged during the Great Schism in CSI fandom that was occasioned by the season 6 finale. There will be plenty of patterns and links!

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#8)
    by rdandrea on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 02:05:15 PM EST
    Shoot. I want a piece of that contract. Might as well make my blog-surfing habit pay. Who got it? Booz, Allen, Hamilton? SAIC?

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#9)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 03:04:04 PM EST
    This makes $600 toliet seats look cheap. Bob - I will click on you as soon as I leave the site.

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#10)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 03:28:58 PM EST
    edgar, and I thought they were fixing the cable tv.

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#11)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 03:51:47 PM EST
    Bob, they are! They should have your IP address mapped to your street address beside a picture of you and your blog url by now, and they know when you change the channnel away from Faux Snooze. But they only picks on ya cuz they luvs ya! ;-)

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#12)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 03:56:19 PM EST
    Bob - I clicked on you. I must say I think you have nothing to fear...

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#13)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 04:29:46 PM EST
    JimakaPPJ, I wasn't fearing. I was hoping.

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#14)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 05:00:55 PM EST
    The fact that the web is a vast source of information is sometimes overlooked by military analysts . . .
    No sh|t, Sherlock. Why do you think everybody on the Left knew there were no WMDs in Iraq?

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#16)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 09:21:02 PM EST
    Really not a lot of resources for research. Good point narius. Nice to see you continuing to slowly improve your reasoning. I agree, $450k is peanuts, and will produce nothing that can't be done by a few of us here with search engines, as Molly pointed out. It's probably just some lowly bureaucrat playing with his dreams of his tiny little empire and his little bit of budget authority using the money to hire his girlfriends geekish cousin or brother so he can score. Might as well just junk the whole program.

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#17)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 09:33:55 PM EST
    Narius:
    $450k for 3 years are not a lot of money.
    I may agree with narius's opinions, but I can't dispute his mathematics on this one. This is such a small investment that it's barely worth talking about. It sounds like a token investment only, just to allow them to say they are studying blogs. It certainly does not sound as if they are really going to do any serious research, because they can't be staffing a real research unit for that amount of money. Maybe the $450K is just going to pay for a few more computers and some software to extend their existing data mining operations?

    Re: Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs (none / 0) (#18)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jul 02, 2006 at 09:37:55 PM EST
    oops, that should have read: I may not agree with narius's opinions ... I'm sure you all knew that anyway, but thought I should set the record straight!

    Military Announces Plan to Study Blogs | 17 comments (17 topical)