The History of US Army Psychological Operations Pt 1 FT TheIOGuy SGM (r) Kenneth Ramos
Welcome back to The Trunk Tales.
In Part 1 of our series on the history of U.S. Army Psychological Operations, Drew Lemacks sits down with SGM (R) Kenneth Ramos, better known as TheIOGuy, for a grounded, unfiltered, and often hilarious conversation about influence, information, credibility, and the long history behind the craft.
This episode starts in the modern information environment: AI slop, fake viral images, social media manipulation, misinformation, and the strange reality that people will sometimes reject what is real while accepting what is obviously fabricated.
From there, Ken walks through what Psychological Operations actually are, and what they are not. This is not just “make a leaflet” or spooky internet buzzwords. Real Psychological Operations require planning, target audience analysis, series development, production, approval, cultural review, language review, and a clear understanding of the behavior a message is intended to influence.
Drew and Ken also get into the roots of American influence operations, from Revolutionary War messaging and the Hessians to radio broadcasts, leaflets, surrender appeals, credibility, and why making promises you can actually keep matters. Ken explains why the wrong message in the wrong place can create real-world consequences, why translation matters, and why the history of Psychological Operations deserves more serious preservation.
This is Part 1. More to come.
Viewer Discretion:
This episode contains strong language and discussions of war, propaganda, information warfare, misinformation, and military operations.
Chapters
00:00:00 - Cold Open: Psychological Operations
00:00:33 - Intro: SGM (R) Kenneth Ramos Joins The Trunk Tales
00:01:10 - AI Slop, Fake Images, and Modern Media Literacy
00:09:40 - What Psychological Operations Actually Means
00:12:30 - Early American Influence and the Revolution
00:14:40 - Leaflets, Radio Messages, Threats, and Credibility
00:18:30 - Influence, Audience Trust, and Narrative Control
00:27:00 - Special Operations, UW, and Working in Parallel
00:31:00 - Planning, Target Audience Analysis, and Product Development
00:34:30 - Digital Signals, Communication Channels, and Technical Tangents
00:39:30 - Approval Chains, Translation, and Cultural Review
00:44:30 - Surrender Messaging, Leaflets, and Real-World Risk
00:49:30 - Fort Bragg, Museums, and Preserving the History
00:53:40 - Building the Psychological Operations History Series
00:55:15 - Tinfoil Hats, Movie Magic, and Ghost Army Tangents
01:03:25 - Short Cut vs. Extended Cut and Closing
Guest Links & Resources
Army WTF Moments Store: https://shoparmywtfmoments.bigcartel.com/
US Army WTF Moments on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@usawtfma
WTF Nation Radio on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WTFNationRadio
Ken Ramos on X: https://x.com/TheIOGuy
Stay Connected
Website: https://thetrunktales.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTrunkTales
Spotify: https://lemacks.app/tttspotify
X: https://lemacks.app/tttx
Substack: https://lemacks.app/tttsubstack
Patreon: https://lemacks.app/tttpatreon
Rumble: https://lemacks.app/tttrumble
Reddit: https://lemacks.app/tttreddit
Facebook: https://lemacks.app/tttfb
Instagram: https://lemacks.app/tttig
Threads: https://lemacks.app/tttthreads
TikTok: https://lemacks.app/ttttiktok
Bluesky: https://lemacks.app/tttbsky
RSS: https://lemacks.app/tttrss
Official Merch Partner: https://lemacks.app/tttamericanlictor
Music by: https://x.com/J_to_the_AY
Produced by: https://lemacksmedia.com
Our Other Show: He’s Wrong She’s Right
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HesWrongShesRight
Website: https://heswrongshesright.com
Host
Drew Lemacks: https://x.com/TheBaconFather
#TheTrunkTales #PsychologicalOperations #TheIOGuy #KennethRamos #PSYOP #PSYOPS #InformationWarfare #MilitaryHistory #VeteranPodcast #ArmyWTFMoments #WTFNationRadio