Open-source intelligence challenges state monopolies on information
Academics, activists and amateurs are making imaginative use of powerful tools
IN 1960 JOHN KENNEDY, the Democratic candidate for the American presidency, accused the incumbent Republican administration of having allowed a “missile gap” to open up between America and the Soviet Union. The idea seemed plausible. The Soviet Union’s success in launching the first satellite, Sputnik, on a rocket which could double as an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) had naturally led to speculation that it was far ahead of America in the deployment of such weapons.
This article appeared in the Briefing section of the print edition under the headline “Trainspotting, with nukes”
From the August 7th 2021 edition
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Who will control the next Congress?
The new president is much less likely than usual to see allies take charge on Capitol Hill
Has the war in Gaza radicalised young Palestinians?
After Gaza, how will the Palestinians try to build their state?
A year on, Israeli society is divided about the lessons of October 7th
Hawks and doves, religious and secular, right and left—all the old cleavages are resurfacing
The bloodshed in the Middle East is fast expanding
Israel seems certain to retaliate to Iran’s missile attack
What Hamas misunderstood about the Middle East
A war meant to draw in the militant group’s allies has instead left them battered
After the decapitation of Hizbullah, Iran could race for a nuclear bomb
The embattled clerical regime might feel the need for stronger deterrence