The Challenge of Reporting on Terrorism

The 9/11 terror attacks is one of the historical and fatal events that changed the United States of America forever, especially in relation to terrorists and terrorism. While these concepts were on the minds of very few people in America's population before the attacks, the 9/11 incident made terrorism to become one of the major concerns for the whole nation. This is despite of the fact that they were carried out in New York City, Washington, and parts of Pennsylvania. Since it was a major concern, the terror attacks dominated all kinds of media and contributed to increased security measures for average Americans. Moreover, terrorism currently provides a major threat to global security that any time in American and global history (Dyson, 2001, p.3). As a result, it has become a fundamental aspect for law enforcement agencies and their initiatives, particularly with the rapid technological advancements.

Many Americans do not understand the implication and role of terrorism in the modern world. Terrorism is not a something that can be measured or held in hand. It is a theoretical idea that has many different meanings to many different people (Aziz, 2014). U.S. Citizens in general need to understand the full effect of modern terrorism. Blinded by media coverage and dramatized by slow-motion video replay of terrorist attacks,

With the emergence of the 21st century the necessity for a broader understanding of security have said present. The world has experienced a variety of new security challenges that have put at stake human safety and have made policymakers all around the world rethink their approach and strategies when it comes to the decision making process. The rise of terrorist organizations in the international arena as well as the development of extremist groups has offered extreme significance to the quest for power and the search for peace, while requiring us to look back and examine our achievements and failures in the analysis of terrorism, extremist groups and our counterterrorism efforts since 9/11. It is essential for all Americans to understand

Arguably the most famous event that made people aware of the terrorism acts emerging from the Middle East was the infamous 9/11 terrorists attacks carried out by al-Qaeda, which included over 3000 people killed in New York City and Washington D.C. That attracted a substantial amount of media coverage and stimulated the war on terrorism regarding the U.S. and Middle Eastern threats. In late March of last year, ISIS supporters released a list of about 100 names and pictures of U.S. military personnel, and their goal was to kill them and their families. News outlets immediately jumped on the story, even though the author of the list was anonymous. When writing about the threat, news stations informed readers about the common goals of an ultra terrorist group, not knowing that they may have accidentally fueled a “propaganda campaign” help ISIS further carry out their mission of recruitment. Fathali Moghaddam, a terrorism expert and professor of psychology at Georgetown University supports the idea that the coverage of the media has aided in the evolution of ISIS’ “Hollywoody” image (Fryer-Biggs). ISIS isn’t necessarily complaining about the amount of exposure they receive because the media’s news could be considered “add on” almost to their own forms of propaganda in which they are highly skilled with. “It has its own 24-hour channel [with attractive special

The media today is full of coverage about terrorism. From terrorist threats to both unsuccessful and successful terrorist acts.

Terrorism has been creating havoc across the globe for the entirety of recorded history. Today, with the invention of the Internet and different computer programs, these radical groups that enact these deadly attacks are able to change the way they operate through the use of technological advances to further their onslaught on humanity. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation defines terrorism as “the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.” (International vs. Domestic Terrorism). Every person on the planet can be affected by terrorism, regardless of religion, gender, or race. Throughout history radical groups who become obsessed with their own opinions and beliefs try to force others to believe in their views through displays of violence and terror. Contrary to modern beliefs that terrorists are only radical Islam groups like Al Qaeda and Isis, but in reality almost every group of people from Christians to even environmentalists have enacted radical terrorist attacks. Terrorism, like technology, is not exclusive to industrialized nations or countries but is available to anyone with the right resources. These technologies are used throughout the world to connect average people to others and is almost always used for good. Terrorist organizations take advantage of new found communications

It was quite eye-opening to find out that every single country in our world has experienced a terrorist attack, whether that be minor or major. Gaining knowledge about this issue allowed us to come up with solutions to combat this problem, in order to avoid getting targeted by other countries. The largest and most well-known terrorist group in Syria is named ISIS (Islamic State of Iran and Syria). This group has taken over many cities in Syria, including the city of Damascus which has been named “ISIS’ Capital City”. ISIS frequently targets families, and many foreign civilians. During my research, I came to the realization that many other countries also have terrorist groups, which are unheard of in the media. For this task, I researched terrorism in Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Japan, China, Iran, and India. During this research, I learned that Saudi Arabia is one of the largest sponsors of terrorism, and they are the world’s largest source of funds/promoters of Salafist Jihadism, which is where terrorist groups such as ISIS, and al-Qaeda get their ideological basis. Iran, much like Saudi Arabia, is classified by the U.S government as the “most active state sponsor of terrorism”. After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, they have been accused

Terrorism has grown dramatically since September 11. Many aspects can influence or help a terrorist organization plan an attack. First, is the media, which is a social construction of terrorism. The media does not cause terrorism; however, it does enhance its power. I have studied the amount and types of coverage certain-terrorist related incidents receive, and the results came to indicate that not that many terrorism incidents receive coverage in the news. However, those that are linked to domestic terrorist group, and when hijacking is used as a tactic, then they are significantly more likely to be featured not only in the news, but in articles and newspapers as well. One thing one must not forget is that terrorism is a social problem

It would not at all be surprising if this decade comes to be known as the decade of terrorism in years to come. Since the turn of the millennium, terrorism, maybe more than any other global issue or topic, has plagued the world stage with constant news and horror. It can be argued that terrorism is a problem with no solution and no end in sight. The Islamic militant group, Al-Qaeda, is the most well known terrorist organization in the world. Al-Qaeda has been held accountable for some of the most tragic and horrifying acts of terror in history. Still, many people do not fully understand what Al-Qaeda is, who is behind it, and why it exists. A fluid, agreed-upon definition does not exist for the extremist

(5) Terrorism is far more devastating today, than in the past because of the effects of mass media. Today's media influence multiplies the fear effect of terrorism by vividly conveying its horror. This greatly increases our collective sense of vulnerability, and terrorists seek to exploit media coverage to put us and our government on the psychological defensive. The belief that, in some instances, the brilliance of scientists and engineers is no match for the suicidal motivations of terrorists is now a conviction of many Americans who witnessed the September

Throughout history, various terrorist groups have targeted the United States, endeavoring to prove its power and capabilities. Al-Qaeda, a terrorist group, run by Osama Bin Laden, is an explicit example of this. This group’s actions during the early 21st century has changed the lives of American’s forever. On September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda attacked the twin towers and World Trade Center, whilst attempted to attack the White House. This act of terrorism killed thousands of innocent civilians, no matter age, gender or race. Al-Qaeda’s main goal is to diffuse fear throughout the world. As time continues, the amount of terrorism within the world is increasing. An increase of terrorism activity is due to the increased amount of state support for it.

Terrorism has become a central issue in American political discourse, and the events of September 11, 2001 drastically changed the American and international conception of terrorism and the terrorists themselves. This discussion dominates national news stations, radio broadcast, Internet outlets, and has ushered in an era of fear of violence in places previously deemed safe. This fear is aimed at what media outlets and politicians refer to as ‘Muslim Extremism’, and terrorism in America is almost solely associated with the Middle East, Islam, and dark-skinned men. The term ‘terrorist’ has become politically charged, and who is defined as a ‘terrorist’ affects both public perception of real and perceived groups that the terrorists belongs to,

Terrorism has become the lead issue in today’s society, dominating the political agenda when discussing counter terrorism and national security (Walsh, 2016). Terrorist often act on emotional actions rather than rational or intellectual thoughts using unconventional violence in order to create a sense of fear (Walsh, 2016). Osama Bin laden leader of the Al Qaeda terrorist group became one of the most powerful, fearful and well known terrorist group in the world, to this day Citation. The Al Qaeda terrorist group is one of the wealthiest terrorist groups to date giving thousands of trained and motivated fighter’s access to deadly weapons Citation. Many of these Solders carried out vicious acts contributing in the killings of thousands. The research shown below will help explore the reasoning behind the Al Qaeda terrorist group, specifically focusing on Osama Bin Laden and the history of the organization, the objectives and strategy of the Al Qaeda, Al Qaeda’s beliefs and Ideologies, The scale of operation and finally the fate of the organization.

“If the media were not there to report terrorist acts and to explain their political and social significance...terrorism as such would cease to exist” said John O'Sullivan, an editor of the Times of London.1 This is also the way many other people feel about the recent increase in terrorist activity; they feel that the media is causing it. The media is doing this by fulfilling the terrorists' need for publicity.2 Terrorists need media publicity in order to get their views spread to the public.3 Because of this need for publicity, terrorists are committing their acts of terrorism in areas where a lot of publicity will be gained; the United States and Western Europe are the most recent targets. The bombings of the federal building in

Terrorism, which has been around for as long as people can remember, has been on the rise for the past ten years. Terrorists usually use murdering, kidnapping, hi-jacking and bombings to achieve their political purpose. For instance, according to Wikipedia.com (2006), in 1985 816 deaths, then in 2003, more than 1,000 people died by terorist acts around the world. In recent years, terrorism seems to be at a new height and attacks are much more violent than in the past. Unfortunately, in spite of many anti-terror campaigns, projects and organizations are being created for prevention (to prevent) terrorism, the number of terrorists only is increasing. These days terrorism is all over the world.