The explosion of online social media is profoundly changing how people produce, consume and share information. Social media rapidly turns monologues into dialogues and broadcasts into conversations. The result is a rich environment in which ideas are shared, questions are answered and collaborative relationships flourish.

Command and control is a subject that encompasses all military functions. No matter how brave soldiers are or how many billions of dollars are spent, command and control is essential in enabling the warfighter to execute commander’s intent.

The burgeoning number of devices, wireless capabilities and social media sites is challenging one of the leading U.S. intelligence organization’s goals to provide the decisive advantage to outmaneuver adversaries in cyberspace. A large hurdle to overcome is the growing use of commercial technologies that often bring with them varying degrees of information security requirements.

The U.S. intelligence community is seeking to bring citizens into the homeland security quest through new efforts at tapping potential intelligence information from new sources. This thrust aims to provide mechanisms for collecting information that resides outside the realm of conventional sources.

An innovative flying laboratory collected and distributed data across a simulated battlefield network as part of a major U.S. Army communications and networking exercise held in August.

The worst global economic recession since the Great Depression is causing repercussions far beyond home foreclosures, skyrocketing fuel prices and lost jobs. In the intelligence realm, analysts find themselves considering its ramifications on politics, governments and security. Even cyberspace, an environment that is tenuously secure at best, may be feeling the effects of a stagnant economy as organizations—both public and private—put off investments in both security upgrades and research.

As the civilian sector moves toward available collaborative networking applications and technologies, U.S. Forces Korea finds itself on the crest of this wave and is transforming how it conducts business across the command. The results of this effort will enable the command to provide authoritative, far-reaching data while dramatically improving its decision-making capabilities both in peace and wartime.

The Royal Australian Navy is building its first warship designed around a state-of-the-art radar and battle management system that will allow the vessels to share critical information with allied ships. A key part of the system is a phased array radar capable of detecting and identifying airborne targets, from aircraft to incoming missiles, at long distances.

Even as the United States continues to lead a coalition of countries in the battle against terrorism in Southwest Asia, another effort quietly continues to root out evildoers in the southeast portion of the continent. But unlike their counterparts in the deserts and mountains, the troops fighting in the jungles have a secondary position to their country hosts. Also present is a strong focus on non-war activities such as medical care and capacity building that demonstrates to citizens the dedication of both their government and that of the United States to improve their lives. The result of all this work has been a decrease in terrorist activities as well as enhanced quality of life for people in the region.

Complexity is at the core of nearly every mission for the U.S. Marines serving in the Asia-Pacific region. Even something as simple as the international dateline must be taken into account when the U.S. Marine Corps plans operations within its area of responsibility. From the communications perspective, the diversity of countries it interacts with poses significant challenges to its network operators and planners.