Cognitive Warfare Series · CW-NARR-201

Narrative Defense Under Brandolini's Law

A false claim takes seconds to make. A sound correction takes hours. Stop fighting one claim at a time. Learn to operate above the claim, where defensive effort earns a return.

21 Lessons7 sections · self-paced video Up to 12 CPEself-study credit PractitionerIAFIE-aligned · SATs assumed
10×

The energy needed to refute disinformation runs an order of magnitude above the energy needed to produce it. An analyst who answers every claim loses on exchange rate and surrenders the tempo. The course teaches the way out.

What You Walk Out Knowing

Seven measurable outcomes, built across twenty-one lessons and reinforced by a worksheet and a knowledge check in every one.

01

Read the asymmetry

Explain why one-to-one debunking loses and where an analyst-hour earns the most belief.

02

See why lies spread

Emotion, identity, and repetition carry a false claim. Know why facts alone rarely win the exchange.

03

Operate above the claim

Answer a narrative's real weight and reframe, instead of chasing every point it makes.

04

Manage the tempo

Set a threshold and a triage for which claims earn a response, and a rhythm you can hold.

05

Build the strategy

Pick high-value targets, coordinate as one voice, and measure belief change over noise.

06

Drill it in practice

Run the plan under simulation and role-play, then improve after every encounter.

07

Plan for the long term

Write a scalable defense and keep a standing habit of deliberate practice.

Course Sections

Seven sections, twenty-one video lessons. Each lesson pairs a narrated deck with a participant worksheet and a knowledge check.

1

Introduction to Brandolini's Law

The asymmetry, the economics of a false claim, and why answering one claim at a time loses.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
2

The Dynamics of False Claims

Anatomy of a false claim, the psychology and social forces that spread it, and high-impact case studies.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
3

Operating Above the Claim

Answer the narrative, not the point. Read a claim's real weight and reframe instead of chasing detail.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
4

Managing Tempo and Exchange Rate

A threshold and a triage for which claims earn a response, and a rhythm you can sustain.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
5

Developing a Narrative Defense Strategy

Pick high-value targets, coordinate as one voice, and measure belief change over vanity metrics.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
6

Applying Narrative Defense in Practice

Simulation and role-play, then continuous improvement after every encounter.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
7

Conclusion and Next Steps

Build a written, scalable long-term plan, and a standing habit of deliberate practice.

3 lessons · deck + worksheet + check
★

Resources & Further Study

A curated library of the primary research behind the course: Vosoughi, RAND, the Debunking Handbook, EEAS FIMI, and more, with active links for ongoing study.

Downloadable reference library

Who It Serves

Practitioners who confront organized influence activity and answer for the response.

  • Intelligence and counterintelligence analysts
  • Strategic communication and public-affairs staff
  • Trust-and-safety and brand-protection teams
  • OSINT and threat-intelligence practitioners
  • Policy advisors and crisis-response leads
  • Election-integrity and information-resilience teams

Frequently Asked

The questions practitioners ask before enrolling.

Intelligence and counterintelligence analysts, strategic communication and public-affairs staff, trust-and-safety and brand-protection teams, OSINT and threat-intelligence practitioners, and policy and crisis-response leads who confront organized influence activity.

A working foundation in structured analytic techniques. The course builds on SATs rather than teaching them from the start.

Self-paced online. Twenty-one video lessons across seven sections, plus a participant worksheet and a knowledge check for every lesson and a downloadable research library. Lifetime access. Live instructor-led cohorts are available on request.

Yes. The course qualifies as self-study professional education. The video and assessment core earns about eight CPE hours; full completion of the worksheets earns up to twelve. Treadstone 71 issues a certificate of completion stating the hours, which learners self-report to their certifying body, such as (ISC)² or ISACA.

No. The course judges manipulation by its mechanics, never by the politics of the source. The toolkit applies to foreign-state operations, non-state networks, and domestic movements across the spectrum.

Read the asymmetry and choose where effort pays, operate above the claim by answering the narrative rather than each point, manage tempo with a response threshold and triage, coordinate a strategy that measures belief change, and build a written long-term defense you can sustain.

Reserve Your Seat

The Discipline Is the Moat

$1,199Lifetime access · up to 12 CPE

Twenty-one narrated lessons, a participant worksheet and a knowledge check for each, the downloadable resource library, and a certificate of completion.

Treadstone 71 · Cognitive Warfare Series · Heuer is foundational. The Treadstone 71 Advanced SATs are operational.