Strategic Communication Laboratories

Strategic Communication Laboratories describes itself as "the leading supplier of Information Operations, Strategic Communication and Public Diplomacy services to governments and military clients worldwide."

At the centre of SCL's activities are what it refers to as construction and training of people to run an "Opcentre."

"A strategic communication centre puts influence, control and power back into the hands of the government and military. It is an essential component for Homeland Security, Conflict Reduction, International Public Diplomacy and un-mediated Government communications. Over the last 15 years the military use of Psyop has saved thousands of lives on both sides of military conflicts. In the future, conflicts may well be resolved on the global media stage, so that direct action becomes an unnecessary tactic," it states on its website.

"Governments and Military forces worldwide are realising that communication can be a very powerful force. Those countries without the ability to control and respond to communications in a strategic capacity will be at a serious disadvantage in political and military terms," it states.

"SCL is providing governments and military forces all over the world with the power to control their own communication messages and manage perceptions on the world media stage. Furthermore, it gives governments greater access to their own publics in time of crises and the military greater power to influence enemy disengagement in time of conflict," it states.

SCL Comes Out At An Arms Fair

SCL made its public debut in September 2005 with a glitzy exhibit occupying prime real estate at Defense Systems & Equipment International 2005, or DSEI, the United Kingdom's largest showcase for military technology. The main attraction was a full-scale mock-up of its ops center, running simulations ranging from natural disasters to political coups," Sharon Weinberger writes for Slate. [1]

The elaborate booth included actors, flashing computer screens and a "a dark-suited man with a wireless microphone [pacing] like a carnival barker, narrating the scenarios." One of which features a "sophisticated campaign of mass deception" that uses a fictitious chemical plant accident as a ploy to minimize the spread of smallpox."If your definition of propaganda is framing communications to do something that's going to save lives, that's fine," says Mark Broughton, SCL's public affairs director. "That's not a word I would use for that." [2]

Clients

SCL doesn't disclose the name of its past or present clients but boasts that it has worked on communication "campaigns for 27 governments and sovereigns worldwide - including personally advising eleven prime ministers and presidents - as well as NGOs, police departments, military forces and political parties, a major US city, and work for the UN. Projects include election campaigns and analysis (including the largest political research project ever undertaken in the world - a 500-strong team working for over a year on a budget of £20m), together with political lobbying and democratic reform." [3]

Several prorjects it has understaken include:

• "Design and develop a permanent military strategic communication facility capable of delivering strategic and operational psyop campaigns for a South Asian country;"
• "Design, build and install a Homeland Security Centre for an Asian country. The Opcentre can override all national radio and TV broadcasts in time of crisis;" and
• "Recruitment, training and equipping an operational and tactical Psyop and Civil Affairs military unit for a British Commonwealth country." [4]

Contact details

Strategic Communication Laboratories
12 St James's Square
London SW1Y 4RB
Tel: +44 (0)20 7930 3500
Fax : 0870 428 0844
Email : opcentre AT scl.cc
Web: http://www.scl.cc

External links

• Sharon Weinberger, "You Can't Handle the Truth: Psy-ops propaganda goes mainstream", Slate, September 19, 2005.