The Terrorist Image

The summer of 2014--when the Islamic State seized Mosul, Iraq's second city; captured vast swathes of eastern Syria; and declared itself a latter-day Caliphate--marked a turning point in the history of photography, one that pushed its already contested relationship with reality to its very limits. Uniquely obsessed with narrative, image management and branding, the Islamic State used cameras as weapons in its formative years as a Caliphate. The tens of thousands of propaganda photographs captured during this time were used to denote policy, to navigate through defeat and, perhaps most importantly, to construct an impossible reality: a totalising image-world of Salafi-Jihadist symbols and myths. Based on a deep examination of the 20,000 photographs Charlie Winter collected from the Islamic State's covert networks online in 2017, this book explores the process by which the Caliphate shook the foundations of modern war photography. Focusing on the period at which it was its strongest, Winter identifies the implicit value systems that underpinned its ideological appeal, and evaluates its uniquely malign contribution to the history of the photographic image. The Terrorist Imagetravels to the heart of what made the Islamic State tick during its prime, providing unique insights into its global appeal and mobilisation successes.

The summer of 2014–when the Islamic State seized Mosul, Iraq’s second city; captured vast swathes of eastern Syria; and declared itself a latter-day Caliphate–marked a turning point in the history of photography, one that pushed its already contested relationship with reality to its very limits. Uniquely obsessed with narrative, image management and branding, the Islamic State used cameras as weapons in its formative years as a Caliphate. The tens of thousands of propaganda photographs captured during this time were used to denote policy, to navigate through defeat and, perhaps most importantly, to construct an impossible reality: a totalising image-world of Salafi-Jihadist symbols and myths. Based on a deep examination of the 20,000 photographs Charlie Winter collected from the Islamic State’s covert networks online in 2017, this book explores the process by which the Caliphate shook the foundations of modern war photography. Focusing on the period in which it was at its strongest, Winter identifies the implicit value systems that underpinned the Caliphate’s ideological appeal, and evaluates its uniquely malign contribution to the history of the photographic image. The Terrorist Image travels to the heart of what made the Islamic State tick during its prime, providing unique insights into its global appeal and mobilisation successes.

The phrase 'War on Terror' has quietly been retired from official usage, but it persists in the American psyche, and our understanding of it is hardly complete. Exploring the role of verbal and visual images in the War on Terror, the author finds a conflict whose shaky metaphoric and imaginary conception has created its own reality.

The book acts as a guide to the images of terrorism that we see daily in the mass media. The author believes that our perceptions of terrorism are formed by the interaction of bureaucratic agencies, academics and private experts. These images and stereotypes that we are offered do not necessarily reflect objective reality.

The summer of 2014--when the Islamic State seized Mosul, Iraq's second city; captured vast swathes of eastern Syria; and declared itself a latter-day Caliphate--marked a turning point in the history of photography, one that pushed its already contested relationship with reality to its very limits. Uniquely obsessed with narrative, image management and branding, the Islamic State used cameras as weapons in its formative years as a Caliphate. The tens of thousands of propaganda photographs captured during this time were used to denote policy, to navigate through defeat and, perhaps most importantly, to construct an impossible reality: a totalizing image-world of Salafi-Jihadist symbols and myths. Based on a deep examination of the 20,000 photographs Charlie Winter collected from the Islamic State's covert networks online in 2017, this book explores the process by which the Caliphate shook the foundations of modern war photography. Focusing on the period in which it was at its strongest, Winter identifies the implicit value systems that underpinned the Caliphate's ideological appeal, and evaluates its uniquely malign contribution to the history of the photographic image. The Terrorist Image travels to the heart of what made the Islamic State tick during its prime, providing unique insights into its global appeal and mobilization successes.

Fast-moving, self-perpetuating images of violence have radically changed the nature of insurgency in modern times, and the global media trafficking in these images have fundamentally transformed the act and speed of the exchange among populations. First satellite TV, then laptops and the Internet, and now cellphones and social media, new technologies have revolutionized the act of communication and have collapsed the impediments of time and distance. Rebels who hope to overthrow states and revolutionaries who aim to establish transnational, ideological communities have only to utilize these dynamic technologies to advance their goals. Yet trial and error has also taught a key lesson: in a visual world, the pull of the violent image is more powerful and resonant than the draw of the carefully-crafted word. Neville Bolt dives headfirst into the innovative strategies of today's revolutionaries and their fascinating appropriation of the nineteenth-century practice of "propaganda of the deed," or the political act of violence. No longer is the terrorist act simply a means to push governments to overreact, therefore shredding their legitimacy and credibility. The deed has instead become an efficient tool to initiate a campaign of shock and awe, exposing and exploiting the grievances that underlie communities' fragile ties. Images of 9/11, 7/7, Abu Ghraib, and "collateral damage" are the contemporary weapons of choice. The Violent Image explores the emotional and psychological components of this visual "moment of shock," or the binding of emotive pictures to messages causing popular uprisings. From terrorist groups such as the Fenians and the Taliban to the architects of the ongoing Arab Spring, this study follows insurgents and their manipulation of violent imagery to build narratives and bring social change. Taking advantage of the "war of ideas," new revolutionaries generate surges of support that spread virally through global networks, often so quickly that states are unable to respond in time and kind. This book ultimately asks whether the world has reached a point in which insurgents and populations are driving images and ideas so rapidly that we are already in the grip of a new era of revolutionary politics.

This eBook edition of "9/11 Through The Lens" has been formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for all devices. 250 high resolution color photographs arranged in a chronological sequence and showing the disastrous aftermath of two airplanes crashing into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan after being highjacked by terrorists on September 11, 2001. Includes the burning towers seen from uptown; the photographer's trip to the ground zero area; and the conditions north of the World Trade Center, near West Street. Also views of New York City Fire Department fire fighting and rescue operations in the areas near West Street, the Verizon Building, 7 World Trade Center, the North Bridge, the Customs House, the Winter Garden, and the American Express Tower at the World Financial Center.

Gegründet im Jahr 2000 widmet sich das Jahrbuch der Europäischen Geschichte von der Frühen Neuzeit bis zur jüngeren Zeitgeschichte. Die große zeitliche Breite, thematische Vielfalt und methodische Offenheit zeichnen das Jahrbuch von Beginn an aus und machen es zu einem zentralen Ort wissenschaftlicher Debatten. Das bleibt künftig so. Mit dem Jahrgang 2014 verändert sich das Jahrbuch aber in mehrfacher Hinsicht: Das Jahrbuch erscheint mit der Ausgabe 2014 im Open Access. Jeder Band setzt einen thematischen Schwerpunkt. Das Forum bietet Platz für geschichtswissenschaftliche Reflexionen und Debatten. Jeder Beitrag des Jahrbuchs durchläuft ein strenges Peer-Review-Verfahren. Das Jahrbuch erweitert seinen Namen zum „Jahrbuch für Europäische Geschichte. European History Yearbook“. und druckt künftig deutsch- und englischsprachige Beiträge, seit 2015 ausschließlich englischsprachige.