Packaging Terrorism Co-opting the News for Politics and Profit

by Moeller, Susan

• ISBN13: 9781405173667
• ISBN10: 1405173661
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-12-22
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

"Packaging Terrorism is the account of a very simple idea. The idea is this: that it's not the acts of terrorism that most matter in the post 9/11 world, it's what we are told to think about the acts of terrorism. Politicians tell us what to think. The media tell us what to think. Even terrorists tell us what to think. They all want to attract our attention. They all have reasons for wanting us to think in a certain way. They all want to tell us why an act of terrorism matters. They all have agendas. They all are packaging terrorism for our consumption. We are the audience for all those disparate actors." Terrorism has become an every-day global event--in Iraq, in Israel, in India, in Indonesia, and in the United States. Packaging Terrorism investigates how western media have identified and covered international terrorism and violence since September 11, 2001. Comparing US coverage with that of British and of Arab media, Packaging Terrorism not only explores media coverage of terrorism around the world, but also explains the priorities, assumptions, political debates, deadline pressures and bottom-line considerations that will continue to influence this coverage in the future.

Author Biography

Susan Moeller is the Director of the International Center for Media and the Public Agenda (ICMPA) at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Table of Contents

What is Terrorism?

Introduction: A Very Simple Idea

Are You Ready

Words and Trojan Horses

Political Correctness: can I use the word "terrorist"?

Why Do News Standards Matter

What is Terrorism?

The Politics of Coverage

Making Terrorism the "Big Story"

Tragedy and Politics: What We Hear, Why We Hear It

The Voices of the Powerful

When Caring About Victims Sells News

Parsing the Difference Between Terrorism and War

Co-opting the News / Co-opting the Public

The Stories That Are Told

Why Some Media Do a Better Job

What Are the Images of Terror?

The Politics of Images

When Did Pictures Start to Matter?

"ItâDzs No Time to Be Squeamish": The "Jumpers" at the World Trade Center

The PublicâDzs "Picture of the Year": The Flag-Raising at Ground Zero

"Is American Blood More Precious Than Iraqi Blood?": Ali Abbas and Pfc. Jessica Lynch

Terrorists Want an Audience, Too: Daniel Pearl, Nicholas Berg and Beyond

"Cleaning Up" the Pictures: Madrid and Fallujah

Losing Control of the Image: Official photos, Snapshots and Cameraphones

What Do We Need to See? What Do We Need to Do?

Conclusion: Packaging Terrorism

The End

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.