Who is writing your news?

“No! Not five; I read it was just one,” said he. “But in the briefing, they said all our pilots are back, so that means there were no losses..” I refuted him. “But the CDS stated otherwise”; our little group had indulged in table-talks while slurping Chinese noodles. Like every other Bhartiya, I am utterly captivated by Operation Sindoor. I was glued to the screen, absorbing every official briefing, zooming in on the “before and after” images released by the Indian Army. And yet, my curious mind was looking for something untold.

‘Rafale downed’, ‘Destroyed S-400’, ‘After Abhinandan Another One’, ‘Chinese dragon shows teeth’, ‘Ceasefire- India’s political weakness’, ‘Pakistan’s Symbolic Victory’, I clicked on every headline. And then, instead of relishing our triumph, counting how many Indian cities were protected from enemy attacks and how many lives were saved by Indian forces, all I did was tittle-tattle about what India might have lost! Media narratives significantly influence our mindset and certainly shape our perceptions of Victory and Defeat.

The Pakistani military attended the funerals of LeT terrorists. They used foreign-bound passenger planes as shields during airstrikes. When India launched precision strikes on the Pakistani terror camps, the Pakistani Army retaliated by attacking Indian temples and cities! And yet, their atrocious acts went largely uncondemned by the media in India and abroad! In contrast, India was portrayed as the aggressor in foreign media despite showcasing its military might with sound judgment! The Pakistani propaganda claimed that the Indian Government staged the Pahalgam attack and killed Indians to target Pakistan! The Pakistani Government, their cricketers, actors, media influencers and ideologically aligned media houses all systematically built a narrative against Indian forces and Government! Amidst the roar of missiles and the buzz of drones, the strategic narratives have emerged as a new “noise of war” for sure.

“Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets,” now, we know why Napoleon said information is the crucial element of every war.

In today’s media-saturated global environment, having a favourable geographical location, economic power, and military might are no longer sufficient to safeguard borders or maintain peace within the country. In this Information Age, we need new tools to attain victory.

Today, social media influencers are lured to spy against the motherland, sharing sensitive information with the enemy through reels and vlogs. In today’s world, the news is “made”, and doctored videos are circulated as evidence by adversaries. Media platforms are used to manipulate the truth and create internal and external pressure to undermine the morale of a country. A few keystrokes can pollute minds and instill doubts about military acumen. Manipulated information can lead to market crash, provoke parliamentary questioning, and isolate the country on the global stage. In this complex Global Information Environment, India needs a Sharp Power like China or an Information Dominance like America, of course, in the Indian context! It needs the ability to collect, process, propagate, and protect target information while simultaneously denying the same capabilities to adversaries. The goal is to ensure a seamless flow of information and protect democratic values from manipulation, repression or foreign meddling.

According to the US ACPD report, China invests billions of dollars every year in media operations to influence the Chinese portrayal around the world. The report suggests that China paid millions to prominent Western newspapers and magazines in order to gain legitimacy. If several well-known international dailies report that China has the best warships or one of its make shot down a Rafale, who wouldn’t believe it?

During Operation Sindoor, Pakistani propaganda gained initial momentum through such coordinated disinformation networks. But soon, India banned Pakistani social media accounts as well as the news portals from Pakistan, China, and a few other countries that were spreading false information. India released before-and-after satellite images and provided detailed military briefings. The official X handle of the Press Information Bureau consistently published fact checks on Operation Sindoor, effectively exposing the Pakistani Disinformation Operation. Additionally, India sent a multi-party delegation around the world as part of public diplomacy efforts to advocate for India’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks.

After all this turmoil, India must understand that to triumph over propaganda with truth, ‘timely’ and ‘precise’ military strikes must be complemented by ‘equally timely and precise information dissemination’ to the public. If it’s not, then the enemy gains room for a disinformation campaign.

And as Information consumers, we must know who is writing our news and develop our conscience to distinguish the truth from falsehood.

(The writer is a foreign affairs expert. Views personal.)