MESOP IN DEPTH : New In-Depth Report Looking at Islamic State Propaganda / Quilliam Foundation release “The Virtual ‘Caliphate’: Understanding Islamic State’s Propaganda Strategy

LONDON – A new report by the Quilliam Foundation takes an in-depth look at the workings of the Islamic State (IS) propaganda machine and draws the conclusion that “with all its com. lexity and gloss, the organisation’s propaganda is not singularly responsible for radicalising individuals, let alone their joining the jihadist cause abroad or carrying out attacks at home”. However, the report warns that IS propaganda can expedite the transition of a tacit supporter of the ideology into an active member.Senior jihadism researcher Charlie Winter identifies six key narratives present in the high production value media released by IS; brutality, mercy, victimhood, war, belonging and utopia.

The brutality, Winter argues, is a red herring which obscures the appeal of the organisation to foreign recruits. Those that wish to join IS are seeking “immediate change and the ability to transform their future in the long term…Unless we understand what makes up this ‘utopia’, any attempt to challenge the ideas is doomed to failure.”By using a social media in the place of a ‘radical’ mosque from which to disseminate propaganda and provide raw material for ‘jihobbyists’ to produce further material, IS is “working to polarise international publics, sustain their organisation’s global relevance (in jihadist and non-jihadist spheres) and present their enlisters with ‘evidence’ to convince potential recruits to become active members.”Winter also distinguishes between recruitment to the cause, and enlisting in the organisation, and the separation between the offline influence and the need for human contact to spark and sustain the radicalisation process. The Quilliam Foundation is a counter-extremism think tank based in London which primarily focusses on Islamism. www.mesop.de