ISIS’ Use of Social Media as a Terror Tactic

ISIS’ USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA AS A TERROR TACTIC
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I. Introduction
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a terrorist organization that originated as an offshoot of al-Qaeda (Lieberman 2017). Since its formation in 2013, ISIS has been responsible for numerous violent attacks around the world, and it has been known for its extensive use of various tactics to achieve its terror objectives. Notably, it is common for terrorists to rely on propaganda and hate speech to spread their message, recruit new members, and justify their actions (Rapoport 2013). Nacos (2015) notes that social media has emerged as one of the tools that terrorist groups used to recruit new members for their causes. ISIS has been at the forefront of using social media for propaganda, and its use of social media has evolved significantly since its formation (Blaker 2016). The group has used social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to distribute its message, recruit new members, and coordinate attacks.
The purpose of this research essay is to explore the impact of the evolution of ISIS's utilization of social media on its operational capabilities and success in carrying out terrorist attacks. This essay will analyze the use of social media by ISIS, its impact on the group's growth and recruitment, and the role of social media in shaping the group's ideology. Additionally, this essay will examine the relationship between social media and the success of ISIS's attacks, and the efforts to counter ISIS's social media presence. Ultimately, this essay will argue that the evolution of ISIS's use of social media has significantly impacted the group's operational capabilities and success in carrying out terrorist attacks.
II. The Use of Social Media by ISIS
In the early days of the group, ISIS mainly used social media to distribute its propaganda videos, which showed the group's fighters engaging in violent acts and promoting its extremist ideology. The videos were distributed on platforms such as YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook. Notably, Twitter was one of the significant social media platforms that were used by ISIS to conduct a pervasive media campaign. Efforts by Twitter employees to deal with ISIS’ use of Twitter by revoking some of the accounts that were involved in spreading the terrorist organization’s propaganda resulted in the CEO and some of the employees receiving death threats (Blaker, 2016). In one of the examples of media campaigns conducted on Twitter, an ally of ISIS carried out a terror attack in a Nairobi mall in September 2013 with the Twitter being used as a platform for providing an update on the attack from inside the mall. Though Twitter revoked the account, other accounts emerged almost immediately reporting on the event.
As the group expanded, it started using social media more strategically to recruit new members. ISIS's social media strategy involved using a variety of platforms to reach potential recruits, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Telegram. The group used these platforms to distribute its message and to provide potential recruits with a sense of belonging and purpose. ISIS's social media strategy was further refined in 2014 when the group established its own m...