Abstract
Ella Minty is a British public relations practitioner and commentator on a range of modern communication issues and practices. In this short book, she considers the record of ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and in particular its use of social media for publicity and recruitment purposes.
The structure of Social Media and the Islamic State is quite straight forward and the book would seem approachable for those lacking much background on the topic as well as advanced scholars. A brief Introduction is followed by a literature review, which provides an examination of writing and research related to extremism, internet developments, government responses to terror, and ISIS’ history. Chapter 2, “21st-Century Challenges: Internet and Social Media,” narrows in on social media uses and potentials, with a more thorough review of literature dealing with practices and outcomes among organizations, political movements, and governments involving social media. In Chapter 3, “A Failure in Public Engagement,” Minty critiques communication efforts by western governments in response to ISIS messaging and actions, concluding that they are inept and that traditional notions of public diplomacy need major revision.
The book’s fourth chapter, “Discussion and Analysis,” and Chapter 5, “Conclusions,” offer explanations for why ISIS is particularly adept in its use of Twitter and Facebook. They reinforce the point that governments have been too staid in their communication approaches and need to modernize by incorporating some of the same strategies and tools used by ISIS to address issues in their own countries and globally. Then, in a short afterword, Minty is even more prescriptive in calling on intelligence organizations and individual nations to combat ISIS by using social media tools with revised message strategies and stricter policing of the internet.
Students and researchers interested in any aspect of title subject matter should find the extensive bibliography at the book’s end quite useful. It runs 18 of the total 98 pages and draws from resources and literatures in communication, global affairs, public administration, and other fields in a way very useful to all whose backgrounds and fields of study are not so wide ranging. It is frustrating in a few instances that sources or topics referred to in chapters do not appear in the bibliography, but overall, this section is a strength of the book.
The readability of Social Media and the Islamic State is such that it would be fine for interested upper level undergraduates, and certainly a recommended reference for graduate study and scholarship in the area. If there is a single conclusion the book leads to, it is that counterterrorism efforts involving communication from individual nations, multi-governmental endeavors, or independent organizations needs to be more interactive and less reactive than previous attempts. The author makes this point throughout, labeling strategies up until now as “feeble,” as more “monologue” than dialogue, and as based on “20th century public engagement” methods, while ISIS grasps and employs 21st century communication means and effects.
Additional points of emphasis in the book include repeated statements about ISIS’ sophistication in its use of social media. From the author’s first page, it is claimed that the group “has taken the tools and techniques of PR and strategic communication to the level of perfection.” Parallels are drawn throughout comparing ISIS to multi-national marketers and global advertising campaigns in terms of targeting, media placement, message development, and strategic timing. Their production capabilities are praised and a rumor is cited that the “communications director” within the structure of ISIS is a former senior PR director educated in the United Kingdom.
In all instances where the Islamic State’s methods and implementation of social media are compared to those used by governments and counterterrorism campaigns, their superiority is clear. There are, in fact, instances of ISIS hacking government sites and communication, including the Twitter and YouTube accounts of the United States Central Command. In making these points, Minty is persuasive in building the case that governments need to put effort toward better understanding online media environments and becoming active users of social platforms for interacting with audiences.
While surely troubling to most readers, the examples of ISIS communication methods and success given in the book do a good job of reinforcing the point.
Written from a multi-disciplinary perspective and intended for readers with interests in different areas, Social Media and the Islamic State does a good job of addressing those whose subfield is public relations. Given the book’s subtitle, Can Public Relations Succeed Where Conventional Diplomacy Failed? interest is piqued and American readers might ask how the author defines PR. In fact, the question comes and goes through a first reading of this interesting and useful volume. Finally, in the last paragraph of the last chapter of the book, Ella Minty reveals her definition as coming from Dr. Rex Harlow, a founder of the Public Relations Society of America.
As a last comment, it should be noted here that the book was written prior to the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.
