Soldiers need broadband to succeed in theater

Learn more in today\'s DoD Report.

DoD Report – Tune in weekdays at 40 minutes past the hour for the latest news on the Defense Department. The DoD Report can be heard on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin and Amy Morris (6-10 a.m.) and the DorobekINSIDER with Chris Dorobek (3-7 p.m.). Listen live at FederalNewsRadio.com or on the radio at 1500 and 820 AM in the Washington, D.C. metro area. The DoD Report is brought to you by Dell.

  • Can you have more by having less? It seems contradictory, but the Army might be a case in point. The Army has more radios, computers and advanced networking technology than ever before. But, National Defense reports, soldiers at war can actually be “information-deprived.” What do they need? Some say broadband — right to the front lines. Right now, the networks in the battlefield are accessible by divisions, brigades and battalions. But, smaller units are essentially being left out, even though they lead the day-to-day fighting in places like Afghanistan. Squads, platoons and companies are going to require high-bandwidth connectivity so they can share information and immediately know what’s happening on the ground. The good news is — help seems to be on the way. In the Army’s 2010 modernization roadmap, the “network” is given top priority, and the pressure is on for the Army to deliver a battlefield network that supports small, mobile units.
  • The controversial website WikiLeaks, which has published some of the military’s secrets, is keeping a few secrets of its own. The Wall Street Journal reports, the whistleblower website has set up an elaborate global financial network to protect the identity of the people who are funding the site. Some governments and corporations are upset by the site’s publications, and some have already sued WikiLeaks or attempted to block it. The founder of Wikileaks Julian Assange is now saying members of their staff are afraid that their money and infrastructure is being targeted. Read more on the DorobekInsider Must Reads page.

Check out all of Federal News Radio’s coverage of Defense issues here.

Copyright © 2024 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.