Emergence and Influence of the Zapatista Social Netwar

Abstract

Editors abstract. Social netwar is more effective the more democratic the setting. We condense this chapter from our earlier RAND book, The Zapatista Social Netwar in Mexico (1998). The case shows how the Zapatista movement put the Mexican government on the defensive during 1994 1998, a time when Mexico was evolving from an authoritarian to a more open, democratic system. NGO activism even impelled the government to call a halt to military operations on three occasions yet the air of crisis also prompted the Mexican army to adopt organizational innovations that meant it too became a more networked actor. Until the Battle of Seattle, this case, more than any other, inspired social activists to realize that networks and netwar were the way to go in the information age.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2001
Accession Number
ADA485231

Entities

People

  • David Ronfeldt
  • John Arquilla

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Combat Operations
  • Computer Communications
  • Computer Networks
  • Computers
  • Electronic Mail
  • Governments
  • Guerrilla Warfare
  • Human Rights
  • Information Operations
  • Insurgency
  • New York
  • North America
  • Political Systems
  • Public Policy
  • Terrorists
  • United States
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • History

Readers

  • Game Theory.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Systems Analysis and Design