Brand Caliphate and recruitment between the genders

Download
Author
Monroe, Brandi Lynn Evans
Date
2016-09Advisor
Bellavita, Christopher
Second Reader
Rollins, John
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Since the declaration of the Islamic State (IS) in 2014, men and women have been recruited to join the Caliphate in numbers surpassing those recruited by al Qaida. This variance in recruitment volume is likely attributable to the online propaganda campaign, Brand Caliphate. This thesis looks at the recruitment of women and asks if Brand Caliphate specifically targets females with its messaging, and if so, is the messaging effective? Based on a textual analysis of Brand Caliphate's propaganda, it appears IS tried to deliver messaging targeted toward females. However, six case studies of radicalized females suggests the recruitment of these women does not appear to be directly attributable to the targeted messaging. There is, however, evidence that most of the female recruitment studied linked to online radicalization and Brand Caliphate's broader messaging. All of the women studied did initially look online for information regarding IS. This initial outreach served to identify them as targets for radicalization by IS recruiters, who continued to persuade the females through direct online communication. Ultimately, a sense of belonging to a community, even if it exists online, served as a more powerful draw to potential recruits than the targeted messaging of Brand Caliphate.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.Collections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
THE HOMEGROWN JIHADI TERRORIST: THE THREAT OF ISIS-INSPIRED RADICALIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES
Burroni, Marcelle R. (Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School, 2018-09);As this study establishes, the influence of Islamist extremists has expanded into the United States. The terrorist organization known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has attracted many U.S. citizens to support ... -
GREECE AND THE MIGRANT CRISIS: THE THREAT OF FOREIGN TERRORIST FIGHTERS
Varvoutis, Athansios R. (Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School, 2018-06);Since the June 2014 establishment of the “caliphate” by the Islamic State, there has been an alarming increase in the number of terrorist attacks in Europe. Concurrently, wave after wave of migrants from war-torn countries ... -
THE STRATEGIC USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA BY THE ISLAMIC STATE: EXPLORING THE CONTENT AND TECHNOLOGY OF EXTREMISM
Christodoulopoulos, Efstathios (Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School, 2020-12);In 2014, the Islamic State (IS) captured the world’s attention with the declaration of the Caliphate. IS showed significant success in exploiting the social media landscape to deliver costly signals that advanced its ...