Fatal attraction: explaining variation in the attractiveness of Islamic State propaganda

Abstract

Why do different Islamic State propaganda products receive different numbers of views? This article relies on a dataset of 1700 Islamic State photo essays to examine this question. It finds that violence in Islamic State photo essays, especially retributional violence, or violence directed at the group’s enemies and wayward adherents, leads to increased viewership. Releases that highlight the group’s military operations, governance activities and geographic expansion also draw more attention, although less than the increase for products containing retributional violence. These findings have implications for research and counterterrorism efforts targeted at reducing the propaganda appeal of terrorist organizations.