Abstract
The controversy around the film The Innocence of Muslims, manifesting itself in violent demonstrations and counter-demonstrations basically all around the world in September 2012 brought a debate into the open that has kept academics, policy makers and security officials busy for some years now: how to respond to terrorism, and to ideologies of hate? Many strategies have been suggested on how to combat ‘them’ and to win ‘their’ audiences’ hearts and minds. This contribution aims to shed some light on the main conceptual issues around this question, commenting on ‘modern’ mass media (TV, radio, print press) first before discussing the dissemination of ideologies of hate in the ‘post-modern’ media (Internet, YouTube, twitter) and how to counter them (if possible at all), which seem to be the more pressing issues for reasons to be explained below. It will conclude with suggesting that responding may not be as urgent or necessary as it may look at first sight.
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Notes
- 1.
As quoted in Sutton et al. (2012).
- 2.
Bobbitt (2009, p. 63), with further references.
- 3.
Gilbert Ramsay, CSTPV, conversation with Rob Painter, Google Head of Geolocation.
- 4.
Blakely (2009).
- 5.
A copy of the dossier of evidence on the attacks presented by India to Pakistan can be found online at: http://arunshanbhag.com/2009/01/07/terrorist-evidence/.
- 6.
- 7.
See McClure (1998).
- 8.
- 9.
Booth (2012).
- 10.
So the conclusion of Weimann and Tsfati (2002). Readers should also note that the manuscript was finalized before whistleblower Edward Snowden brought the US NSA’s ‘Prism’ and the British GCHQ’s ‘Tempora’ programs to the general public’s attention.
- 11.
It is worth observing that there is considerable uncertainty about the importance of the Internet in processes of radicalization into terrorism. In a systematic review of the literature, Wikstrom and Bouhana have argued that the medium seems to play a surprisingly limited role. See Bouhana and Wikström (2011).
- 12.
- 13.
According to US national archives, 58,193 Americans died in the Vietnam War, of which 47,406 were killed as a direct result of hostilities. So far, the US Defense Department reports that 4,422 US soldiers have died as a result of Operation Enduring Freedom (whether ‘in action’ or for ‘non-hostile’ reasons).
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Schmid, A. P. Media and Terrorism, IR5901 Fundamental Issues and Structures of Terrorism Course Notes (undated).
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Lehr, P., Ramsay, G. (2014). Responding to Terrorism and Ideologies of Hate. In: Wolf, S., Casaca, P., Flanagan, A., Rodrigues, C. (eds) The Merits of Regional Cooperation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02234-5_2
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