Book Review: LikeWar
How the Internet Became a Battlefield
We used to think war happened “over there”—in deserts and jungles, through bullets and bombs. But in LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media, authors Peter Singer and Emerson Brooking lay out a chilling truth: the battlefield is now your feed.
This book isn’t about cyberwarfare in the traditional sense. It’s not about firewalls or hackers stealing bank data. It’s about hearts, minds, and algorithms. It's about how social media has become the primary terrain for modern conflict—where memes replace missiles, and every “like” becomes part of a larger campaign.
The Core Idea:
Forget the old model of state vs. state, soldier vs. soldier. LikeWar shows how everyone—from terrorist groups and troll farms to influencers and politicians—is now engaged in a war for attention. And the tactics aren’t just manipulative—they’re strategic, coordinated, and designed to destabilize.
ISIS didn’t just fight on battlefields—it built a media empire. Russia didn’t need tanks to influence elections—it used fake accounts, viral content, and chaos. And in the U.S., political actors have adopted the language of war: “retweet brigades,” “info ops,” “disinfo campaigns.”
This is war reimagined. And the scariest part? We’re all participants.
Why It Works:
What makes LikeWar so compelling is its balance of urgency and clarity. The authors don’t just drop buzzwords or peddle fear—they walk readers through the mechanics of modern propaganda in a way that’s both accessible and terrifyingly real.
They dive into how platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube reward outrage. They show how bad actors—from white nationalists to authoritarian regimes—exploit those systems with surgical precision. And they make the case that information warfare isn’t just an abstract threat—it’s the water we’re swimming in.
Some Gaps:
If you’re looking for a playbook on how to counter these tactics or rebuild digital civic space, this book only gets you halfway there. It diagnoses the disease with haunting accuracy—but its prescriptions are light. That said, maybe that’s not a flaw. Maybe part of the horror is realizing how few safeguards exist.
Why You Should Read It:
Because if you’re online, you’re in the fight. Because democracy now depends on people understanding how narratives are shaped, spread, and weaponized. Because your instinct to click “share” might be feeding a machine built to confuse, inflame, and divide.
Bottom Line:
LikeWar doesn’t just explain how the internet changed war—it shows how war changed the internet. And unless we figure out how to reclaim truth and rebuild trust, we’ll keep losing ground in a fight we barely know we’re in.