Disruptive Power

Abstract

Digital communication technologies have thrust the calculus of global political power into a period of unprecedented complexity. In every aspect of international affairs, digitally enabled actors are changing the way the world works, and disrupting the institutions that once held a monopoly on power. No area is immune: Humanitarianism, War, Diplomacy, Finance, Activism, or Journalism. In each, the government departments, international organizations and corporations who for a century were in charge, are being challenged by a new breed of international actor. Online, networked and decentralized, these new actors are innovating, for both good and ill, in the austere world of foreign policy. This book will bring these actors to light, explore their methods and tools, and demonstrate how they represent a new form of power. What is it that makes for successful digital international action? What are the tools being used by the actors increasingly controlling international affairs? How does their rise change the way we understand and act in the world? What are the negative consequences of a radically decentralized international system? And how can governments and corporations act to promote positive behaviour in a world of disruptive innovation? Disruptive Power explores the frontier of international affairs, profiles a wide range of emerging actors, and provides a road map for navigating a networked digital world. A world enabled by information technology, and led by disruptive innovators.

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