Blogs as credible intelligence?

Appearently the US Air Force Office for Scientific Research has just funded a research
program, that includes studying blogs, to obtain "timely and credible" intel on the war on terror.

In this article from the USAF news site, the lead scientist cited the Mohammed cartoon crisis as an example of how blogs can affect real life situations:

A good example, he said, is the recent furor in the Muslim world over the publication of cartoons of Mohammad in a Danish newspaper. The original publication wasn't much noticed in the West, but bloggers discussed this event and that possibly contributed to riots worldwide.

Full USAF News story here

Perhaps the blogs referred to, is more of a "Jihaddist" nature, but ATS being a top "blogging site" (not distinguishing between actual blogs and "normal" threads), especially in those related areas of the war on terror and such, isn't it fair to assume that sites like this will be scrutinized even more in the time to come, by various intelligence services?

I know this isn't a novel idea around here, enough paranoia seems to go around as it is!

I just thought it interesting that USAF is now publicly taking an interest in this.

Your thoughts?

This to me sounds like a heaping pile of FUD (fear, uncertanty and doubt) being dumped onto the the so-called blogsphere.

"but bloggers discussed this event and that possibly contributed to riots worldwide"

This bold part right here - it's ment to make the average joe uncertain about blogs.

The government hasn't ever really been too keen on the whole idea of blogging and bloggers. IMO - they may see this as giving "too much" power to the common man.

I see it like this - the blog is like the modern printing press, and like the printing press untill recently only a "select few" would have the skills and tools needed to run such a site. But now most anyone can have their own internet "printing press", and it looks as if it's almost impossible to control/contain.

I agree nn, with the "fear-of-the-one-man-press" angle, just take China's stance on blogs for example.

This bold part right here - it's ment to make the average joe uncertain about blogs.

Most likely. This is also the first time I've heard blogs mentioned in connection with the riots, but again, it might have been a bigger issue on some less western-friendly boards, but I wouldn't know.

Perhaps it's just another facet of the self-censor debate, this time on the internet, watching what you say and all that, it was a big issue in Denmark, back when this whole mess was unfolding.

In any case, I don't think it should be any different expressing ones views freely, whether on the internet or any other medium, than what freedom of expression grants us in any other context.

But as you said, this story might very well be spun, to instil FUD in us.