Terrorism Essay -- Homeland Security, Politics, Social Issues, Media

George Orwell once said, political language with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchistsis designed to make lies sonorous truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind. In todays modern society, the world is continuing to become smaller and more interconnected than ever before due to media networks such as Cable News Network (CNN) providing round-the-clock news coverage and the network. In the last few decades, both information sources have been instrumental in helping to expose individuals all over the world to new ideas and assorted cultures. However, with this great opportunity to expand ones knowledge and misgiving of humanity, also brings to light other individuals or groups adverse and often grave ideologies as well. Philip Seib contends in his book, The Al Jazeera Effect,that terrorist organizations such as Al infrastructure have made good use of new media, taking advantage of satellit e television news channels hunger for content and using it to disseminate propaganda, display hostages, gain exposure, and on a grander scale, they count on the media to help spread terror(pg. 3). Terrorists are unconventional in their plan of attack to battle and operate with the belief that violence is a worthy deliver in order to depose any organization or authorities that does not share their beliefs. Due to terrorist groups ability to use television and the Internet to proselytize, recruit, train, and dispatch orders to their followers, governmentsespecially those that protect free speechhave been at a loss as to how to deal with the use of mass communication for such evil purposes(pg. 3). Because of the unconventional nature that terrorists chose t... ..., this time with Muslims as the elementary target(Dickinson, Keating). The Internet and terrorist actIn Gabriel Weimanns article, How Modern Terrorism Uses the Internet in the United States Institute for Peace Specia l Report, he states that, the Internet is in many ways an almost perfect configuration of the democratic ideals of free speech and open communication it is a grocery of ideas unlike any that has existed before. Unfortunately, the freedom offered by the Internet is vulnerable to evil from groups that, paradoxically, are themselves often hostile to uncensored thought and expression. Ironically, the same decentralized network of communication that the U.S. security forces created out of fear of the Soviet union now serves the interests of the greatest foe of the Wests security run since the end of the Cold War international terror (pg. 2).