Who is running after whom and who is using whom? The question jumps into the mind whenever the relationship between terrorism and the media is discussed. The media — whether radio, television or print — eagerly publishes anything about terrorism, believing that violence and its perpetrators will win readers and viewers from a public thirsting for sensational news.
Each branch of the media, in fact, is competing with every other branch as all seek exclusive stories. It is these and other considerations that have made terrorism a favorite subject for the media. Some handle it as a piece of news; others want to get deeper into it and invite analysts and experts — and even known terrorists — to explain their opinions.
At the same time, well aware of the power of the media, terrorist leaders, sponsors and sympathizers attempt to manipulate the media, hoping to influence the public and eventually to convince others to agree with them. This is no coincidence since terrorist leaders have long sensed the service a powerful media can do them, given its ability to shape people’s convictions.
Some terrorists use the media to justify and legitimize the kinds of acts they commit. Others simply want to be in the limelight. There are also those who use the media to terrorize people and create a constant state of panic and fear.
A simple question I always want to ask is: What would happen if the media refused to publish news about terror and terrorists, and if terrorists declined to talk to the media or cooperate with it in any way? Such a thing may never happen because the relationship between the two is so intertwined that they can’t do without each other. The interdependence is such that neither party could survive without the other.
The media knows very well there is no other source for really sensational news except that provided by terrorists and the atrocities they continue to commit all over the world. The terrorists also know very well that the media provides them with an effective means for conveying their messages and enabling them to continue terrorizing the public. As long as there are terrorists willing to kill and destroy and a media running after news, the controversy will continue over the relationship between the two.
