Abu Muqawama Changes Hands

Today is the first day in the blogosphere without Andrew Exum and his contributions to the incisive and entertaining domain of Abu Muqawama. In just a year and a half, the site has become the best COIN-centric civilian blog on the web, and makes a strong case for best civilian blog anywhere for military affairs.

In reading the flood of comments following Exum's departure, I was surprised to find out just how many readers have joined in recent months. I first encountered the blog last October and still consider myself a relative latecomer, but as Exum himself noted, the readership growth has been "exponential". Perhaps the greatest testament to the strength of the site's commentary is the diversity of the current audience . Mothers of servicemen, ROTC cadets, active duty US officers, foreign scholars, amateur civilian analysts...all of them have found AM to be intelligent and accessible. That diversity is what separates Abu Muqawama from narrower sites such as the excellent but military-dominated Small Wars Journal and the exclusive Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard. Rather than confine debate to credentialed experts, AM has opened its doors to the masses, and the resulting dialogue has created a strong community that should continue to thrive.

Andrew Exum may have left Abu Muqawama to further his academic career, but the blog may become his greatest legacy. There is a revolution underway in public discourse, with issues of national strategy being debated by an active and informed virtual community. Bloggers have been electronically recording their opinions for some time now, but we are beginning to see devoted followings coalesce around the best sites. Abu Muqawama is at the leading edge of that trend, and as more people are drawn into the grand discussion, impassioned arguments from below will meet receptive policymakers from above. The revolution has just begun, and many people have lined up to resist change (I'm looking at you, Air Force), but the elitist circles of national security are under siege. So thank you Andrew Exum, for taking an inside joke way too far and giving life to Abu Muqawama.

And to Erin Simpson, the new Chief of Blogging Operations: Welcome. We can't wait to see how you build upon Exum's work. Abu Muqawama will remain in good hands.