PowerPoint Presentation
Erica LUIJoey MAKKrystal LUKThomas MAN Social Media
PersuasionSuccess
- Click on images/charts for source websites/papers.-
Supplementary notes to some slides typed in this field.
IntroductionSome better known
players:FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube
Introduction
Use of social media Peoples view? Social Media is the Fourth
Force
IntroductionPeer persuasion can create subjective normsMay
ultimately influence behaviorYouth turn to social media to seek
acknowledgmentPeer pressure to conform exerted by online networks
accessible anywhere anytime
-from lecture 7 notes
Case Study Approach--ISISCNN Report on March 4, 2015
AgendaBackgroundIdeologyDistinguishment from Previous Extremist
GroupsSocial Media ProfileISIS YouTubeISIS
TwitterConclusionDiscussion Qs
Background of ISISThe Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)A
brutal Sunni Muslim terror organizationBecame popular since Syrias
civil war in 2012Close ties with Al-Qaeda until early 2014Made
direct threats against US + UK + France
ISIS LeaderAbu Bakr al-Baghdadi
American + British Journalists Beheaded in 2012-2014
Ideology of ISISClaim authority over all Muslims
worldwideSalafist-jihadi in natureStrive to liberate lands of Islam
from other cultures through jihad--personal duty of every
MuslimEnemies: US + the West, pro-US Arab regimes, secular Arab
regimes (infidel)Fight with uncompromising military struggleSeek to
establish a Caliphate
Distinguishment from Previous Extremist GroupsLargest in land
control + fighting size ever (CIA estimated 31,500 fighters in Sep
2014)Wealthiest in history with a GDP of over USD $2
billionEstablished governance (inc. taxation, judicial systems
based on Sharia law and municipal control)
Social Media Profile of ISIS
RecruitRadicalizeRaise funds
- Official Facebook account deleted -> minor social media
channel for ISIS- Regular content uploaded by supports onto
YouTube- Most prominent use on Twitter
Persuasion Strategies Employed on YouTubeAt least 4 affiliated
media outlets (e.g. Al Hayat Media Center)to shoot commercialsto
publicize military actionsto publicize the speeches by ISIS
leaderProfessionally translated into 6 languages: English, Turkish,
French
Persuasion Strategies Employed on YouTubeDepict ISIS positive
image with:Charitable actsEstablishment of a model Islamic
stateEradication of evil against Islamic law/valuesMilitary
strength
A series of 8 videos in Jun-Aug 2014
Persuasion Strategies Employed on YouTubeUsed GTA 5 to start a
recruitment videoA message in slightly broken English:"Your games
which are producing from you , we do the same actions in the
battlefields !!"
Releases Hollywood-style propaganda video
Persuasion Strategies Employed on YouTube Executed a 19 year old
Syrian soldier with a tank (Oct 24, 2015)Fadi Amr al-Zaydan
Incite pride among ISIS supporters (tank + public execution of
enemies)Instill fear among Westerners (gore + barbarism)
Result on YouTube
~1.2 million people in UK watched the Foley beheading video in
its early release
Sense of detachmentIntimacyErosion of moral responsibility
- Detached from events (distant time/place) + people (watch
anywhere anytime without anyone knowing)- Intimacy (front row seat
in front of screen)- Erodes moral responsibility -> desensitize
youth of violence- Radicalize vulnerable teens -> fulfill
self-actualization
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterFalsify location
infoDetectable app to fake GPS coordinatesType in US cities
deceptively in location field on profileOver-emphasize English for
tweets--targeting US (esp. for Western hostage beheadings)Mix
languages: English hashtags + Arabic content
- Falsified locations -> instill fear in the West + point to
likeminded extremists to American radicals- Use of English in ISIS
tweets > proportion of English-speaking fighters
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterIdentify supporters
easily with keywords in user handle/display namesDawla (Arabic for
state), baqiyah (an ISIS slogan), Shami (Arabic for Syrian)
referring to the caliphatemuhajir (immigrant), ghuraba (strangers)
labeling foreign fightersumm (mother), bint (girl/daughter) for
females; abu for males
- X official Twitter a/c -> ID with keywords in user handle
(@johndoe)/display names (John Doe)- Different types of identifiers
for different target groups- Top Twitter icons (right): ISIS flag,
Al-Qaedas leader Bin Laden, ISIS leader
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterEvade a/c suspension by
deleting tweets periodically/tweeting privatelyOfficial media ops
set up smaller a/c + publish links to ISIS content on
file-sharing/YoutubeMujtahidun (jihadists) disseminate more
widelyOrganize hashtag campaigns to focus-group messaging +
branding concepts
#AllEyesOnISIShashtag campaign for global admirers(memes,
shout-outs to their favorite martyred fighters, handwritten notes
celebrating ISIS)
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterPiggyback on trending
US pop culture hashtags to encourage teens to click
- #ASKRICKY -> top trending YouTube celeb-
#stevensheadinobamashands -> real campaign by western ISIS
recruits with American memes criticizing US military deployment by
Obama- Ambush + brainwash American teens
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterPublish links to their
English-language magazines in PDFSatisfy maximizers crave for
knowledge on the cause--central route
Images with headlines/quotes from QuranShort essays bragging
about killings and Islamic law implementationGraphics + articles
on:IdeologyTheologyPraise of ISIS (inc. quotes from US military +
political figures on their strength)
- Most active social media users: maximizers (demand most info
from all sources, use all resources on/off-line to support causes)
(optional reading)- 1st mag: Islamic State Reportperipheral route
(image of harvest after paying Zakah2.5% Islamic tax on savings to
give to the poor)- 2nd mag: Dabiqcentral route (philosophical
justification to join ISIS + quoting US figures)
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterUse Twitter app (The
Dawn of Glad Tidings) to inflate + control messages
We are coming, Baghdad (June 8, 2014)
March into northern Iraqi city of Mosul (June 5, 2014)
- ISIS media ops -> Dawn (on Google Store) ->post to
installers a/c from time to time with unified content- Compliment
real-time military actions on ground -> motivate online support
to offline volunteering- Top search results of Baghdad on Twitter
(right)
Persuasion Strategies Employed on TwitterISIS women display
their lives--testimoniesReason escaping from the West--effective to
eliminate oppression Promote sisterhood in ISIS
territory--belonging + love needsUse user tags + direct messages to
potential recruits--interpersonal persuasion
- Testimonies to escape from Western oppression of Muslims
(security needs)- Emotional appeal (sisterhood) + logical appeal
(Qur'an +Sharia law)
Result on Twitter
User base growth in 2013: ISIS 83.9% vs. Twitter ~30%User base
growth in 2014: ISIS 172% vs. Twitter 20%46,000 overt ISIS
supporters on Twitter (Nov 2014)20,000-31,500 fighters in
Iraq/Syria15,000 foreign fighters2,000 Westerners
(from CIA intelligence reports in May-Aug 2014)
(Left) User base of ISIS outgrew Twitter in total in 2013 +
2014
Conclusion
Urgency to curb ISIS online presence (quick expansion of sphere
of influence)Irony: Islamic extremists -> Western recruits ->
Western technology -> Islamic crusade -> Western
countries
Discussion QsWhich social media persuasion strategy is the most
effective? Why?2) Suggest ways to counter ISIS social media
success.
http://www.newsweek.com/making-sense-isiss-use-twitter-312983http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/youtube-battle-against-isis_55d61416e4b0ab468da037a6http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/586159/ISIS-police-unithttp://www.cbsnews.com/news/why-so-difficult-counter-isis-social-media/
