Criminal subjects in the U.S. corporate media in the context of the "war on terror"
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Criminal subjects in the U.S. corporate media in the context of the “war on terror” Robert Beshara
Transcript of Criminal subjects in the U.S. corporate media in the context of the "war on terror"
Criminal subjects in the U.S. corporate media in the context of the “war on terror”
Robert Beshara
What images or words come to your mind when you hear or read the following word?
TERRORIST
Terrorist AGacks on U.S. Soil by Group, From 1980 to 2005, According to FBI Database
(Danios, 2010)
Muslims ≠ Terrorists
(The Daily Dish, 2010)
Terrorism as a problem in the 21st century
• PracVcal dimension: how we deal with the problem: counter-‐terrorism (e.g., military intervenVon), foreign policy, diplomacy, etc.
• TheoreVcal dimension: how we conceive of and talk about the problem: alternaVve discourses and soluVons (e.g., conflict resoluVon), etc. – Let us look at 3 examples from recent events to see how the criminal as a subject is constructed discursively in the mainstream U.S. media (e.g., The New York Times).
The problem of definiVon
• “Despite intra-‐field debate, most North American scholars adopt the three-‐prong definiVon of terrorism: it is poli%cally mo%vated, perpetrated by non-‐state actors like lone wolves or organizaVons, and targets civilians rather than the military.
• […] Words, the DNA of language, can be exercised to change the way we feel. Steven Pinker says a ‘taboo word’ [like the t-‐word] may be used instrumentally to trigger an emo,onal response [like fear]” (Chenoweth, 2013, my emphasis).
Terrorists Strike Charlie Hebdo Newspaper in Paris, Leaving 12 Dead
Chapel Hill ShooGng Leaves 3 Muslim Students Dead; Neighbor Is Charged
Germanwings Crash in French Alps Kills 150; Cockpit Voice Recorder is Found
Charlie Hebdo shoo%ng
• Date: 01/07/15. • Crime: 12 people killed.
• Cause of crime in the media: “Terrorism.”
Criminals: Cherif Kouachi and Said Kouachi.
Chapel Hill shoo%ng
• Date: 02/10/15. • Crime: 3 people killed.
• Cause of crime in the media: “parking dispute.”
Criminal: Craig Stephen Hicks.
Germanwings Flight 9525
• Date: 03/24/15. • Crime: 150 people killed.
• Cause of crime in the media: “depression.”
Criminal: Andreas Lubitz.
So who is a terrorist? And why is he a dehumanized criminal?
• Both Craig Hicks and Andreas Lubitz were non-‐state actors who targeted civilians, but were their acVons poli%cally mo%vated? Arguing over intenVonality is tricky!
• In the case of the Kouachi brothers, their acVons are considered poliVcally moVvated because Al-‐Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) claimed responsibility for the Charlie Hebdo aGack.
• The Kouachi brothers certainly commiGed a heinous crime, but in the news we hardly hear about the fact that they grew up marginalized as French ci%zens, being the children of Algerian immigrants. No crime is jusVfied, but we have a responsibility to understand criminals if we are to stop or reduce ‘crimes against humanity’.
• Unfortunately, the repeated and calculated use of the t-‐word in the mass media, parVcularly in the West in the post-‐9/11 era, funcVons in many cases in such a way as to dehumanize certain criminals in order to make the public excessively fear Muslims in general as monstrous others. This media propaganda can and does result in stereotypes, prejudice, and discriminaVon—and maybe even worse things.
Conclusion
A “white” non-‐Muslim individual commipng a crime similar to that enacted by a “non-‐white” Muslim other is NOT a terrorist, but a mentally ill person or, perhaps, a neighbor arguing over a “parking dispute.”
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References Bilefsky, D., & Baume, M. (2015, January 7). Terrorists strike Charlie Hebdo newspaper in Paris, leaving
12 dead. The New York Times. Retrieved from hGp://www.nyVmes.com/2015/01/08/world/europe/charlie-‐hebdo-‐paris-‐shooVng.html?_r=0
Chenoweth, E. (2013, May 28). Why Defining Terrorism MaGers [Web log post]. Retrieved from hGp://themonkeycage.org/2013/05/28/why-‐defining-‐terrorism-‐maGers/
Clark, N., & Bilefsky, D. (2015, March 24). Germanwings crash in French Alps kills 150; cockpit voice recorder is found. The New York Times. Retrieved from hGp://www.nyVmes.com/2015/03/25/world/europe/germanwings-‐crash.html
Danios. (2010, January 20). All terrorists are Muslims...Except the 94% that aren't [Web log post]. Retrieved from hGp://www.loonwatch.com/2010/01/not-‐all-‐terrorists-‐are-‐muslims/
Katz, J., & Pérez-‐Peña, R. (2015, February 11). In Chapel Hill shooVng of 3 Muslims, a quesVon of moVve. The New York Times. Retrieved from hGp://www.nyVmes.com/2015/02/12/us/muslim-‐student-‐shooVngs-‐north-‐carolina.html
The Daily Dish. (2010, September 16). Chart of the day. The AtlanGc. Retrieved from hGp://www.theatlanVc.com/daily-‐dish/archive/2010/09/chart-‐of-‐the-‐day/182369/
Town of Chapel Hill. (2015, February 10). Chapel Hill police invesVgate mulVple homicide on Summerwalk Circle. Retrieved April 8, 2015, from www.townofchapelhill.org/Home/Components/News/News/8372/
