Hyperlinked Sympathizers: URLs and the Islamic State

Samantha Weirman and Audrey Alexander

Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, 2020, vol. 43, issue 3, 239-257

Abstract: The self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and its supporters take measured steps to ensure the group's survival in the virtual sphere, despite continued efforts to undercut the organization. This study examines a time-bound sample of 240,158 Uniform Resource Locators shared among English-language ISIS sympathizers on Twitter to better understand how networks in the jihadisphere inoculate radical materials and communities online. A thematic but descriptive analysis of results illustrates the dynamic apparatus of digital communications leveraged by ISIS. Findings suggest a more comprehensive strategy to undercut ISIS's web of online information requires a similarly networked response by counterextremism practitioners.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1080/1057610X.2018.1457204

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