The Islamic State, or ISIS have continued to try and spread fear across the world with their recent attack on the airport in Brussels, Belgium. This larger attack comes in the wake of other smaller scale attacks in Turkey, including the cities of Ankara and Istanbul. These attacks leave many people in fear and anger and wondering why the group is successful.
One answer to that question is social media. ISIS’ use of social media, mainly Twitter, is a big factor that contributes to their ability to gain followers. The propagandists of ISIS send messages out over dummy accounts to try and appeal to potential supporters. The Islamic State’s flag is a symbol that is easy to duplicate which is appealing to people, especially because it is similar to flags in the days of Mohammed the prophet. These people are also capable of appealing to the emotions of supporters to portray the radical Islamists as good people in a great environment. They tell of great camaraderie amongst members to persuade people that they should join, not telling of the horrific actions that the group is responsible for. ISIS also interacts with social media followers, for instance in January they fielded the hashtag “Suggest a Way to Kill the Jordanian Pilot Pig” before he was finally burned alive. This also touches on another point that death by burning is forbidden in Islam, however the Islamic State utilizes it and promotes it to people through social media still convincing followers that they are supporting a good cause.
In addition to using the propaganda to gain supporters, the terrorist group also uses social media to show off their actions. The group will put mass executions and choreographed videos of executions on Twitter in order to spread fear and make themselves known throughout the world. This includes the beheading of US citizen James Wright Foley, which had a huge impact. Even though scenes like these create bad publicity for the group it doesn’t matter because they are still make waves and getting noticed internationally.
In attempts to combat ISIS’ effectiveness through social media, Twitter has recently deleted upwards of 125,000 accounts that have been affiliated with the group. These actions need to take place to ensure that more people are not swayed by the group’s rhetoric and attempt to join.
The Islamic State, or ISIS have continued to try and spread fear across the world with their recent attack on the airport in Brussels, Belgium. This larger attack comes in the wake of other smaller scale attacks in Turkey, including the cities of Ankara and Istanbul. These attacks leave many people in fear and anger and wondering why the group is successful.
One answer to that question is social media. ISIS’ use of social media, mainly Twitter, is a big factor that contributes to their ability to gain followers. The propagandists of ISIS send messages out over dummy accounts to try and appeal to potential supporters. The Islamic State’s flag is a symbol that is easy to duplicate which is appealing to people, especially because it is similar to flags in the days of Mohammed the prophet. These people are also capable of appealing to the emotions of supporters to portray the radical Islamists as good people in a great environment. They tell of great camaraderie amongst members to persuade people that they should join, not telling of the horrific actions that the group is responsible for. ISIS also interacts with social media followers, for instance in January they fielded the hashtag “Suggest a Way to Kill the Jordanian Pilot Pig” before he was finally burned alive. This also touches on another point that death by burning is forbidden in Islam, however the Islamic State utilizes it and promotes it to people through social media still convincing followers that they are supporting a good cause.
In addition to using the propaganda to gain supporters, the terrorist group also uses social media to show off their actions. The group will put mass executions and choreographed videos of executions on Twitter in order to spread fear and make themselves known throughout the world. This includes the beheading of US citizen James Wright Foley, which had a huge impact. Even though scenes like these create bad publicity for the group it doesn’t matter because they are still make waves and getting noticed internationally.
In attempts to combat ISIS’ effectiveness through social media, Twitter has recently deleted upwards of 125,000 accounts that have been affiliated with the group. These actions need to take place to ensure that more people are not swayed by the group’s rhetoric and attempt to join.