How has the Social Media and Technology Affected Modern Day Terrorism?

The rise of technology and social media has seen many more accessible means of mass, easily accessible, global communication media that have seen an influx of terrorist groups are increasingly using social media platforms to spread their messages and further achieve their goals. Although global government authorities are making huge strides to diminish the affect of modern day terrorists, social media is still playing a key role by the extremist few. The increase in this influx has been partially predicated by the anonymity that can be obtained within modern day social networking.

With this being a very current dilemma that is growing in awareness we thought we’d reach out to a number of journalists to see what they were writing about. Their opinions on the matter are fascinating. Have a read of the below and let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Who did we interview?

Jake Basford                     Mike Magee

Jake Basford – Geek Editor, VadaMagazine

Jake’s experience is mostly in the fields of media, PR and press, specifically within the third and LGBT sectors. At present, I work as the Media Coordinator and Fundraiser for a Castle Preservation Trust, and am the Geek Editor for Vada Magazine, as well as a freelance writer.

In Five years time, Jake would like to be living in London and working in a PR/press role full-time, maybe with a paid magazine column, and a cat. Possibly even a partner.

What did Jake say?

Terrorism? Not so much. Saying that social media affects terrorism is like saying that lolcats have affected culinary choices the world over by asking for chezburgas. Instead what has been developed is a rise in fear of terrorism and political action, leading to keyboard warriors who feel the need to pounce on every public thought expressed by everyone from random people on the street, to POTUS himself. A friend of mine, an educational expert in self-esteem who has recently been called a guru on the subject, has been trolled by anonymous eggs and big-name politicians and journalists alike through social media for her views on the impact of self-esteem and learning in teenagers. She isn’t doing something particularly controversial like swing the vote to nationalism, or insist that the world is flat, but some of the abuse (and I use that word exactly as I mean it) hurled at her would make someone think she was. Combine this activity with publications trying to turn political thought into fear and using that to turn political opinion, and you have a scary war going on. Could Rupert Murdoch be counted as a terrorist, coz if that is the case then can I haz chezburga?

 

Mike Magee – Editor-in-chief, Techeye.net

Mike Magee founded The Register and The Inquirer. He sold the Inquirer to VNU three years ago. Mike has been a journalist for many years and pioneered online journalism. He was recently listed as the 35th most influential person in IT in the UK by the Daily Telegraph. You can find him on twitter, linkedin and facebook and reach him via email mike at techeye.net.

What did Mike say?

While the rise of the mobile phone and software like Twitter and Facebook have caused important and significant changes in the comms landscape, largely for the good, it has its malign side too. Advances in technology have made it easy for terrorists and for that matter other criminals to communicate and have made it increasingly difficult for law enforcement agencies to track and to prevent conspiracies.

What do we think?

Just like “every coin has two sides, every invention has a dark side also”. Social media and technology are not exceptions. With easier, more convenient and quicker accessibility to global communication platforms the sharing of information over traditional “boundaries” (which were tough to break earlier) tis easier than ever before – the rise of social media and technology has certainly helped terrorism grow to some extents. But at the same time, the introduction of the latest technology has also made it easier for government officials to get better an understand actions of the extremist few. So at the end of the day, it all depends how the government authorities are equipped to tackle the advancement of technology and make better use of social platforms where secret comms may happen!

Links to other interviews: