Archaeology as a media experience

En los últimos años ha surgido un gran interés hacia la arqueología, promovido, en gran medida, por la abundancia de programas sobre este tema que son emitidos por todo tipo de canales televisivos. En este texto se examinará el trasfondo de esta explosión de interés y, mediante el abanico de nuevos formatos televisivos, explorar de qué forma se ha desarrollado esta especial relación. Se examinará el potencial de los medios televisivos tanto para educar como para entretener, así como la necesidad de animar el interés público más allá de la televisión. Finalmente, se presentarán algunas opiniones personales sobre la forma que puede adoptar en el futuro la relación entre la arqueología y los medios audiovisuales

THE INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY LANDSCAPE IN THE UK POST-BREXIT

On November 15, 2023, Professor Julian Richards presented The Intelligence and Security Landscape in the UK Post-Brexit for this year’s West Coast Security Conference. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with questions from the audience and CASIS Vancouver executives. The key points discussed were the long-term and intertwined relationship between the UK and EU, the main dimensions that this relationship holds—being first of a strategic and military nature and second a homeland security focus—and the role of international conflicts in illustrating the military capabilities of the UK and EU following Brexit.    Received: 01-26-2024 Revised: 01-29-202

Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism

Intelligence can be seen as a critical tool of power for states in conventional conflict scenarios. Since the end of the Cold War which defined security through the second half of the twentieth century, many states have shifted a large portion of their national security discourse towards international terrorism rather than threats from other state actors. The interaction between terrorist and state actors has often been analysed using Game Theory approaches, since these allow for a notion of the critical interdependence between each side of the equation. In this way, the gathering of intelligence by a state on a terrorist group can be seen as a legitimate and effective element of proactive and pre-emptive counter terrorism policy: essentially the “foreknowledge” of which Sun Tzu spoke. Similarly, terrorists will always be aiming to outwit the state, and they themselves will need information about the capabilities of counter terrorist policies and agencies in order to do so. All of this leads to a complex contemporary debate in Western liberal democratic states in particular, whereby the expansion of intelligence capabilities runs up against civil liberties lobbies, who sometimes recall memories of totalitarian states such as communist East Germany in opposing their government’s supposedly oppressive designs. In response, the spectre of terrorism is often invoked to provide moral justification for enhanced intelligence gathering capability. Thus we can see an inextricable link between an appropriately articulated terrorist threat, and the intelligence component of counter terrorism policy

Fake news, disinformation and the democratic state

From the 2014 referendum in the UK on Scottish independence, a number of political leaders in the West have accused the Russian government of industrial-scale organised disinformation, designed to undermine the democratic process. A number of allegations have also suggested that the Kremlin has been providing financial and other aid to far-right groups in the West to disrupt the political process. In this analysis, the case study of the UK is taken in the period 2014-20. An examination is taken of current research on the scale and effect of organised Russian disinformation strategies; and the emerging official narrative in the UK government about how to deal with the problem. This narrative reveals a complex interplay between defending democracy, while maintaining a “hands-off” approach and ensuring that tech business is welcomed.Desde el referéndum de 2014 en el Reino Unido sobre la independencia de Escocia, varios líderes políticos de Occidente han acusado al gobierno ruso de desinformación organizada a escala industrial, diseñada para socavar el proceso democrático. Varias acusaciones también han sugerido que el Kremlin ha estado proporcionando ayuda financiera y de otro tipo a grupos de extrema derecha en Occidente para interrumpir el proceso político. En este análisis, se toma el estudio de caso del Reino Unido en el período 2014-20. Se examina la investigación actual sobre la escala y el efecto de las estrategias organizadas de desinformación rusas; y la narrativa oficial emergente en el gobierno del Reino Unido sobre cómo abordar el problema. Esta narrativa revela una interacción compleja entre defender la democracia, mientras se mantiene un enfoque de "no intervención" y se garantiza que los negocios tecnológicos sean bienvenidos.Desde o referendo de 2014 no Reino Unido sobre a independência da Escócia, vários líderes políticos do Ocidente acusaram o governo russo de desinformação organizada em escala industrial, destinada a minar o processo democrático. Uma série de alegações também sugeriu que o Kremlin tem fornecido ajuda financeira e de outra natureza a grupos de extrema direita no Ocidente para interromper o processo político. Nesta análise, o estudo de caso do Reino Unido é realizado no período de 2014-20. Um exame é feito da pesquisa atual sobre a escala e o efeito das estratégias de desinformação russas organizadas; e a narrativa oficial emergente no governo do Reino Unido sobre como lidar com o problema. Essa narrativa revela uma interação complexa entre a defesa da democracia, ao mesmo tempo em que mantém uma abordagem “sem intervenção” e a garantia de que os negócios de tecnologia sejam bem-vindos

OPENING REMARKS: CYBER RESILIENCE AND INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES PANEL

On November 25, 2022, Professor Julian Richards, Director of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at the University of Buckingham (BUCSIS), delivered his opening remarks for panel five of the 2022 West Coast Security Conference. Professor Richards discussed the importance of understanding cyber threats to build resilience, supply shortage in the market of cybersecurity related jobs, and the importance of bringing academics and practitioners together in cyber discussions.    Received: 2022-12-30Revised: 2022-12-3

Extremism and Intelligence: A Threat Analysis

Contemporary extremist threats encompass a widening spectrum, whereby long-standing threats are supplemented by the stubborn persistence of historical threats, and by the emergence of new threats and Violent Transnational Social Movements (VTSMs). For security and intelligence agencies, the management challenges posed by the evolving picture are complex and multi-faceted. Probably the most difficult challenge is that of prioritisation and the allocation of resources across the spectrum of investigation. Other challenges include those of recruiting and retaining staff with the right cutting-edge skills, especially in such fields of social media exploitation; and a fundamental definitional question of how to define some of the newly-emerging threats, avoiding questions of surveillance crossing-over into inappropriate suppression of legitimate dissent in a liberal democracy

Mohajir subnationalism and the Mohajir Qaumi Movement in Sindh Province, Pakistan

This dissertation examines the rise of the Mohajir subnationalist movement in Sindh Province, Pakistan. It focusses on the Mohajir Qaumi Movement (Mohajir National Movement; MQM) - the party that has constructed a version of a Mohajir identity for political purposes. The analysis begins with a critical examination of the Muslim movement in British India, which culminated in the formation of Pakistan. The political history of Pakistan up to 1993 is then examined, with particular reference to the development of subnationalist movements. There then follows a detailed appraisal of debates and theories on identity, ethnicity and nationalism. The second section of the dissertation focusses on the Province of Sindh in southern Pakistan. It introduces the research framework and methodologies, and details the range of interviews conducted and archival and other sources consulted. The section proper examines, firstly, the construction of diverse community identities in Sindh Province, and, secondly, the MQM in terms of its political history, patterns of mobilisation, internal structure and aims and rhetoric. The third section of the dissertation is focussed on the city of Karachi; very much the heartland of the MQM- I first examine how and why the MQM came to be the city's dominant agency in the 1980s, and how it ran a "parallel local state" in urban Sindh. I then consider the relationship between Mohajir subnationalism and violent civil disorder in Karachi and Hyderabad. This analysis in turn highlights certain contradictions in the policies and activities of the MQM. These contradictions are explored at length in a concluding chapter which considers the rise and fall of the MQM in the wider context of stateformation in postcolonial developing countries

Digging into data : Open Access and Open Data

Since its foundation in 1995, the e-journal Internet Archaeology has been exploring imaginative and novel methods of publishing online, but also of providing seamless access to underlying data archives. All its content is archived by the UK’s Archaeology Data Service (ADS), and articles and data are all freely available. This paper will discuss exemplars of integrated publications and archives, ranging from the award-winning LEAP (Linked E-Archives and Publications) project, to the more recent development of data papers. It provides some ground-breaking examples of new forms of archaeological dissemination and demonstrates the transformative impact of Internet Archaeology on the publication of archaeological research

Preserving Our Digital Heritage: Information Systems for Data Management and Preservation

It is essential that we develop effective systems for the management and preservation of digital heritage data. This paper outlines the key issues surrounding access, sharing and curation, and describes current efforts to establish research infrastructures in a number of countries. It aims to provide a detailed overview of the issues involved in the creation, ingest, preservation and dissemination of 3D datasets in particular. The paper incorporates specific examples from past and present Archaeology Data Service (ADS) projects and highlights the recent work undertaken by the ADS and partners to specify standards and workflows in order to aid the preservation and reuse of 3D datasets

Cyber Warfare

Since the mid-1990s, discussion around the prospect of cyber war has become an increasingly hot topic. Many countries now place defense against cyber attacks at the highest level of priority in their national security strategies. The normative view of the threat is that, for those countries with a high level of dependence on information technology and networked infrastructure, a major cyber attack has the potential to level the playing field of military capability to devastating effect, whether it emanates from a hostile state or a non-state actor such as a terrorist group. Events such as the cyber attacks against Estonian networks in 2007 have been seized upon by many as early salvoes in the new global cyber war. Critical perspectives, however, suggest that cyber activity is fundamentally different from activity in the physical world, and cyber attacks cannot be classified as acts of war as such. There is further suspicion that the level of threat has been overly militarized when its civil dimensions may be more important, and that military and corporate interest groups may be hypersecuritizing the threat for their own gain. Most of the analysis has been conducted in the dominant military power and one of the most network-dependent countries in the world, the US. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of the normative views of the military cyber threat point the finger squarely at China and, to a lesser extent, Russia, suggesting a new Cold War. Throughout the debate, most accept that cyber threats are real and are growing in complexity and potential impact. Analyzing the nature of cyber threat in the military realm delivers a number of complexities. Much has been written about the legal aspects of “acts of war”, both from offensive and defensive perspectives, and how existing domestic and international regulation may be poorly designed to deal with cyber attacks. Governance of cyber capabilities and cyber defences is proving to be a complicated affair, cutting across traditional boundaries of public/private, civil/military and national/international. How to deliver deterrence in a cyber context has been considered extensively, with parallels often being drawn with the rise of the nuclear threat in the twentieth century. It is recognized in this fast-moving subject area that analysis of case studies of what may constitute cyber attacks will be important. These are examined from the perspectives of both specific incidents in space and time; and of specific technologies being used and how to counter them. Generally, cyber war is proving to be a very interdisciplinary subject, spanning across technical, legal, sociological and political realms. This makes it a vibrant new subject, but also a challenging one for academia, since the subject does not very easily sit within a single identifiable department. Within the general domain of Security Studies, most of the socio-political analysis has been rooted either in conflict studies, and especially the changing nature of postmodern conflict; or in securitization theory, and the manner in which the threat is emerging from political discourse. But these are not the only directions from which the subject is being, or should be approached