Witnessing carnage

Self-documented terrorism and the moral challenges of decentralized digital platforms

Bibliographic Data

ID16764115
AuthorsTal Morse (0000-0002-9960-620X, Shalem College, corresponding author), Doron Altaratz (0000-0003-1327-6404, Jerusalem Multidisciplinary College, Israel)
Year2026
Volume28
Issue4
Pages1524-1549
Publication date2026-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueNew Media & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1461-4448 • E-ISSN: 1461-7315
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/14614448251370967
OpenAlexW7153559584
LanguageEN
References cited61

On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a coordinated attack on Israel, documenting atrocities through wearable cameras and disseminating footage on platforms like Telegram. This article investigates how these self-documented acts exemplify the erosion of traditional distinctions between perpetrators and mediators of representations of violence. Using point-of-view (POV) aesthetics and leveraging decentralized digital platforms, Hamas transformed violence into a mediated spectacle, dehumanizing victims and gamifying terrorism. The study critically unpacks these strategies, highlighting their role in bypassing journalistic filters to spread fear and achieve ideological objectives. The article further examines the ethical and societal challenges posed by this new ecology of media, where platforms act as sites of violence, and witnessing becomes intertwined with participation. By analyzing the events of October 7, this work contributes to understanding the complexities of mediated violence, exploring how end-users recontextualize and circulate graphic content, shaping new forms of media witnessing and engagement with political violence

Dehumanization · Ideology · Moral panic · Politics · Social media · Terrorism · Work (physics · Crime, Deviance, and Social Control · Media, Religion, Digital Communication · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence

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Open DOI