| 
|
The Counter-Terrorism Strategic Communications (CTSC) Project, led by Dr. Alastair Reed, is a collaborative program bringing together experts from around the world to tackle one of the most significant national and global security challenges facing the world today: how to understand and confront the propaganda of violent extremists. Through empirical research, based largely on primary source materials and in-country fieldwork, the project aims to test assumptions and evaluate past campaigns in order to develop key principles and guidelines for counter-terrorism strategic communications efforts. CTSC fellows and experts include J.M. Berger, Dr. Haroro J. Ingram, Charlie Winter and Dr. Craig Whiteside. EVENTA book launch event for Extremism, by CTSC and VOX-Pol fellow J.M. Berger, will be held at the biennial VOX-Pol conference in Amsterdam in August. Click here for more details.KEY PUBLICATIONSFor more past publications, click here. 
|
FEATURED PUBLICATIONSAn Inconvenient Truth: Countering Terrorist Narratives – Fighting a Threat We Do Not UnderstandDr. Alastair Reed Many different approaches have developed to tackle the threat of terrorist narratives from different angles. But inconvenient truth emerges when studying these strategies -- the distinct lack of empirical research to support any one approach over another. We do not properly understand the relationship between consuming violent extremist material and engaging in violent extremist activity. But all hope is not lost. A Tale Of Two Caliphates: Comparing the Islamic State’s Internal and External Messaging Priorities
Dr. Dounia Mahlouly and Charlie Winter
In recent years, the media department of the self-proclaimed Islamic
State has proven itself to be highly adept at strategic communication.
While much research has gone into the group’s digital and online
capabilities, there remains a significant gap in the knowledge regarding
its in-country propaganda operations and objectives. This research paper approaches the issue from a different
angle, attempting to better understand how and why the group
communicates its brand through the lens of two publications – al-Naba’,
its Arabic-language newspaper, which appears to be designed primarily
for offline dissemination in the caliphate itself, and Rumiyah, its
foreign-language electronic magazine, which has only ever appeared
online. Using content analysis to identify and compare each
publication’s internal (local) and external (global) media priorities
over the four-month period between September and December 2016, the paper develops an empirical evaluation of the group’s recent forays into
targeted outreach.
Islamic State’s English-language Magazines, 2014-2017: Trends & Implications for CT-CVE Strategic Communications Dr. Haroro J. Ingram Islamic State (IS) has used English-language magazines as a crucial component of its propaganda strategy, particularly targeting Muslims living in the West. This paper provides a quick reference guide to IS’s English-language magazines released between June 2014 and September 2017 examining key themes and propaganda strategies deployed across three issues of Islamic State News, four issues of Islamic State Report, fifteen issues of Dabiq and thirteen issues of Rumiyah. It concludes by highlighting four trends and their implications for CT-CVE strategic communications practitioners. Countering Terrorist Narratives Dr. Alastair Reed, Dr. Haroro J. Ingram, Joe Whittaker This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, provides an overview of current approaches to countering terrorist narratives. The first and second sections outline the different responses developed at the global and European Union levels. The third section presents an analysis of four different approaches to responding to terrorist narratives: disruption of propaganda distribution, redirect method, campaign and message design, and government communications and synchronisation of message and action. The final section offers a number of policy recommendations, highlighting five interrelated ‘lines of effort’ essential to maximising the efficiency and effectiveness of counter-terrorism and countering violent extremism strategic communication.
|
RECENT VIDEOSBOOKS BY CTSC FELLOWSJ.M. Berger, 2018 Haroro J. Ingram, 2016 Jessica Stern and J.M. Berger, 2016 J.M. Berger, 2011 |
