The terror experts and the mainstream media

The expert nexus and its dominance in the news media

Bibliographic Data

ID12919138
AuthorsDavid Miller (0000-0002-3868-5792, University of Strathclyde, corresponding author), Tom Mills (0000-0003-1389-7577, University of Strathclyde)
Year2009
Volume2
Issue3
Pages414-437
Publication date2009-11-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueCritical Studies on Terrorism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1753-9161 • E-ISSN: 1753-9153
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/17539150903306113
OpenAlexW2046413662
LanguageEN
Citations received30
References cited32

Academic writing on 'terrorism' and the availability to the mainstream media and policy-makers of terror 'experts' have increased exponentially since 11 September 2001. This paper examines the rise of terror expertise and its use in one particular public arena - the mainstream news media. Using a combination of citation analysis and media analysis, the paper presents a ranking of the most influential terror experts in the mainstream news media in the Anglophone world. It is shown how what has been called an 'invisible college' of experts operates as a nexus of interests connecting academia with military, intelligence and government agencies, with the security industry and the media. The paper then takes a small number of case studies of some of the most prominent experts who exemplify the dominant trend in the field and examines the networks in which they are embedded. The last part of the paper uses the data generated to re-examine theories of 'terrorism' and the media, of 'propaganda' and 'terrorism', and of 'source-media' relations. It is suggested that the study of terror experts shows the need to study and theorise the media in a wider context by focusing on the relations between media content and production processes and wider formations of power. In so doing, the paper attempts to connect studies of media and terrorism to wider studies of terror and political violence

Context (archaeology · Dominance (genetics · Mainstream · Media relations · Media studies · News media · Nexus (standard · Political science · Public relations · Sociology · Terrorism · Computer Science · Global Security and Public Health · History · Law · Media Studies and Communication · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence