INFORMATION MANAGEMENT, PROPAGANDA, AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION DURING NATIONAL CRISES: LESSONS FROM THE 1971 CRISIS AND THE HAMOODUR RAHMAN COMMISSION

Abstract

Information has become one of the most consequential instruments of political authority, governance, and national security in modern states. Governments exercise power not only through laws, institutions, military capabilities, and economic resources but also through communication systems that shape public understanding of reality. During periods of national crisis, the management of information often becomes as important as the management of military, political, or economic resources. Communication systems influence public trust, political legitimacy, social cohesion, crisis response, and strategic decision-making.