Terrorism and the Media

"An immensely readable collection of perspectives on the relationship between insurgent terrorism and the media which is long overdue and which sets the standard for future investigation in an area almost devoid of objective review. . . . This is a powerful collection of essays, partly due to the sense the reviewer has that editors Paletz and Schmid approached their subject with almost missionary zeal. This is not to say that they lack intellectual rigour; they most certainly do not, but their style, together with that of their contributors, reflects a real commitment to set the academic pace. . . . If I were a professor . . . [I would tell] my students to read Terrorism and the Media when they weren′t listening to me. No one could wish for a better perspective than that."

--The Journal of Contingencies & Crisis Management

"The book is an excellent starting point, rich with examples, citations, and perspectives lacking in many earlier volumes. It offers readers analytical insight into the goals and aspirations of the various players. It will become a major departure point for anyone wishing to understand the roles played by media in terrorist violence. . . . Gerrits′ study makes excellent use of memoirs and interviews of participants to show the importance of communication to the groups and their purposes. But she avoids the narrow bias against the media portrayed by many observers of the problem."

--Journal of Communication

"This book is a rarity in the academic literature on terrorism: a theme pursued for the most part with genuine intellectual quality control. Social scientific rigor outweighs loose moralizing; and research rather than intuition backs up the contributors′ judgments."

--Brendan O′Leary, London School of Economics

"Terrorism and the Media is an unusual, important, and thoughtful collaboration by two major authorities in different fields--terrorism and media studies. It′s the most comprehensive overview available that discusses the experiences of all participants."
--David C. Rapoport, University of California, Los Angeles
Editor, Terrorism and Political Violence

"This is a long awaited book. It is a unique collection of studies and reviews of different perspectives on the media-terrorism nexus. It includes the perspectives of the terrorists, the governments, the media,...read more...