Terrorism & Counter-Terrorism in the Global Media Age

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This course provides a general introduction of the concept of 'counter-terrorism.' We will start with a broad introduction tackling the domestic and international political, legal, and military frameworks in which counter-terrorism has developed. This will lead us, in a later stage, to consider the tensions between citizen's 'right to know' and the state's 'right to silence' and examine journalistic practices when covering intelligence-related topics. We will study examples illustrating the creativity of individuals, groups and organizations, attempting to circumvent the censorship that is inevitably present during intelligence, espionage, information leaks, and counter-terrorism events. Special attention will be paid to operations carried out by the Mossad, the Shin Bet, as well as digital phenomena such as whistleblowers focusing on WikiLeaks and alternative social media such as Telegram Apps used by terrorists groups such as ISIL.