Defining Terrorism

Experts have tried to define terrorism for decades. Although it has been around for a long time, its prevalence has been expanded by the boom of the media. As our development of technology increases, terror attacks against the innocent become ever more deadly. However, many of our current definitions of terrorism have been either too specific or too vague. In my opinion, terrorism is the expression of political, religious, or ideological belief through the use of calculated yet unforeseeable violence against noncombatant targets in order to cause fear and intimidation. The first part of terrorism stems from the fact that the terrorist party must have a political, religious, or ideological motive. For example, Al Qaeda fights against oppression from the West, while ISIS fights to spread certain Islamic beliefs across the world. In “How Terrorism Ends” author Audrey Cronin writes “Over recent history, terrorism has been consistently tied to the evolving politics and identity of the state…” Without a clear goal or objective, terrorist attacks would be a waste of time and resources for the responsible party. The 911 attacks “were aimed at representations of American capitalism (the twin towers), American military power (the Pentagon), and American political power (either the White House or the Capitol)” DNA OF TERRORISM. ROWLAND AND THEYE 2008. The second part of terrorism relies on calculated yet unforeseeable violence against noncombatant targets. While the brutality of the violence is usually the focus of media attention, the shock factor is just as important. Many argue that terrorism is more brutal due to the fact that “coverage of terrorist incidents that provide dramatic visuals is in a league of its own in terms of media attention”. TERRORISM AS BREAKING NEWS: ATTACK ON AMERICA. NACOS 2007. However, what people sometimes forget is that wars and other disasters around the world can be just as horrific. What sets terrorism apart from other instances of