NATO’s International Military Staff held a discussion in October on how gender-related narratives are used in modern information campaigns and how military communications could respond.
The “Deep Dive” session was hosted on 15 October by the IMS Office of the Gender Advisor, known as GENAD, and looked at how to incorporate gender perspectives across operations in the “information environment” — the space where information is created, shared and used to influence audiences, NATO informed on Wednesday.
The panel included Giovanni Galoforo, a public affairs and strategic communications adviser at NATO’s International Military Staff, Owen Wong, a University of Pennsylvania PhD student, Breda Bunič, a senior analyst at the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats, and La Tosha Walker, a behavioural scientist at NATO’s Allied Command Transformation.
Wong told the session that “adversaries” are increasingly using gender disinformation to undermine public support for NATO, and said “gender-blind communications” could make the alliance more vulnerable.
He cited Russia as an example of using gender as a messaging tool and pointed to work by Canada’s Rapid Response Mechanism team and the creation of Task Force Latvia — described as a permanent liaison between Canada and Latvia — to counter threats in the information environment.
Focus on cognition and early warning
Bunič said the information environment is a “cognitive battleground” shaped by identity and emotions, with gender-related narratives acting as vehicles for “hybrid influence” — a term often used for campaigns that combine different tools such as information operations, cyber activity and political pressure.
She argued for anticipating such narratives, including through early warning mechanisms, and also raised concerns about the vulnerability of information infrastructure that underpins connectivity and information flows.
Galoforo stated that a gender-blind approach “is not neutral” and can create vulnerabilities that adversaries may exploit.
He also set out three ways to assess the credibility of gender perspectives in strategic communications: who is listened to, what is said, and who says it.
Walker discussed how gendered expectations can influence interpretation, judgement and decision-making, and said assumptions can shape how people assess evidence and perceive information, potentially affecting public support and divisions.
She said integrating gender perspectives “pre-emptively” could help identify distorted judgements and anticipate manipulation.
“Adversaries already use gender against us because they know what we have achieved, which demands us to continue further,” Galoforo declared.
