TERRORIST PROPAGANDA IN ALBANIAN LANGUAGE ON YOUTUBE: CHANGES IN PATTERNS AND NARRATIVES 2013-2018
Abstract
The new and fast-developing Internet-based social networking environment has become particularly attractive to terrorists. Social networking sites not only provide a cheaper, better and easier way to spread terrorist content online, but also enable terrorists to address their target public directly and in real time if necessary. In the period 2012-2013 ISIL and other terrorist organizations have had an unusual success in convincing a relatively large number of Albanians, over 100 individuals from Albania and over 300 others from the neighboring Kosovo (and several hundred from other Balkan countries), to join its fighting ranks and territories in Syria and Iraq. YouTube and Facebook have been the main online platforms where terrorist narratives in Albanian were disseminated in search for potential recruits and continued radicalization. In a research conducted in 2013 (Zoto, 2015) I provided a simple method for research on social media, a contained sample and relevant data for measuring propaganda success factors of terrorist propaganda in the Albanian language on YouTube. The sample was researched again in early 2018 and new data was collected with the aim to explore and observe the YouTube-based terrorist propaganda developments over the concept of jihad in terms of content, characteristics of message providers and receptiveness by the target audience in 2018, but also the change in the patterns by comparing new data with the data collected from the 2013 research. The findings from this research are presented in this article.Furthermore, this article describes counter terrorist and counter radicalization initiatives and developments in the Albanian society in the period 2013-2018.
Keywords: Albanian, terrorism, social media, You Tube, ISIL, ISIS, Albania, Kosovo, Balkans, Syria, Iraq, Jihad, online radicalization, metrics, social network analysis.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Declaration/Copyright transfer:
1. In consideration of the undertaking set out in paragraph 2, and upon acceptance by ANGLISTICUM for publication of the manuscript in the Journal, I/We hereby assign and transfer publication rights to ANGLISTICUM, whereas I/We retain the copyright for the manuscript. This assignment provides ANGLISTICUM the sole right and responsibility to publish the manuscript in its printed and online version, and/or in other media formats.
2. In consideration of this assignment, ANGLISTICUM hereby undertakes to prepare and publish the manuscript in the Journal, subject only to its right to refuse publication if there is a breach of the Author’s warranty in paragraph 4 or if there are other reasonable grounds.
3. Editors and the editorial board of ANGLISTICUM are empowered to make such editorial changes as may be necessary to make the Manuscript suitable for publication.
4. I/We hereby acknowledge that: (a) The manuscript submitted is an original work and that I/We participated in the work substantively and thus I/We hereby are prepared to take public responsibility for the work; (b) I/We hereby have seen and approved the manuscript as submitted and that the manuscript has not either been published, submitted or considered for publication elsewhere; (c) The text, illustration, and any other materials included in the manuscript do not infringe upon any existing copyright or other rights of anyone.
5. I/We hereby indemnify ANGLISTICUM and the respective Editors of the Journal as mentioned in paragraph 3, and hold them harmless from any loss, expense or damage occasioned by a claim or suit by a third party for copyright infringement, or any suit arising out of any breach of the foregoing warranties as a result of publication of the manuscript.
