“Think Tanks” as a Tool for Information Confrontation: Evidence from Selected Polish Organizations

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of the activities of Polish “think tanks” that specialize in the study of problems of information warfare, propaganda, misinformation and cybersecurity, drawing attention to the constant or periodic fulfi llment by these organizations of an unacknowledged function. The author concludes that the organizations under consideration act as both analytical centers and “infl uence groups” that promote specifi c content in the interests of the customer and act as tools for the implementation of information warfare. Taking into account the theory and practice of information wars, the article proposes to distinguish a special type of “think tank” involved in the process of international information warfare: the “dual-use” analytical center. The recognition of this type of organization will allow us to separate “think tanks” that act as scholarly research and analytical centers from structures fully or partially engaged in the actual processes of information confrontation between states in international relations.

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