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James Foley
The American photojournalist James Foley. Photograph: Nicole Tung/ROPI/Photoshot Photograph: Nicole Tung/ROPI/Photoshot
The American photojournalist James Foley. Photograph: Nicole Tung/ROPI/Photoshot Photograph: Nicole Tung/ROPI/Photoshot

James Foley: How social media is fighting back against Isis propaganda

This article is more than 9 years old
Hannah Jane Parkinson

In the wake of the journalist’s death, social media companies begin to take an editorial approach to the content they are hosting

On Tuesday, militants from Islamic State (Isis) released a propaganda video depicting the beheading of a kneeling man dressed in an orange jumpsuit, believed to be James Wright Foley, an American photojournalist.

Foley has been missing since 2012 while reporting on the struggle to overthrow Bashar al-Assad in Syria. The final shot of the video showed a man, thought to be another American journalist, Steven Sotloff, being threatened with the same fate.

How does a man’s murder become another social media trend?

The video, entitled A Message to America and directly addressing US President Barack Obama, was initially uploaded to YouTube and has been widely circulated over social media; spreading across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other platforms. Screenshots from the video have also circulated. Trending terms on Twitter were #Isis, #James Foley and #Islamic State.

The widespread distribution of the five-minute clip has sparked much debate about the ethics of sharing a man’s death at the hands of a terrorist organisation, with many users making vocal their objections to widening the audience of Isis’ message and the upset caused to Foley’s and Sotloff’s families.

Blackout on group that murdered James Foley. Don't share video. Give them nothing. #RespectJamesFoley

— mia farrow (@MiaFarrow) August 20, 2014

Out of respect for James Foley and his family, don't share the video. Let's not give this demonic group any more power #ISIS #condemnIsis

— Maureen (@maureen_ahmed) August 20, 2014

Don't share the video. Don't share the pictures. Don't work for ISIS. Share images of James Foley's life instead. #ISIS

— Tom Doran (@portraitinflesh) August 19, 2014

Hend Amry, a Syrian activist and commentator, instigated the hashtag #ISISmediaBlackout, to encourage people to stifle the distribution of the video, starving Isis of coverage. The hashtag quickly gained traction and support.

you know what I think? And I know how crazy this sounds,but we need an #ISISmediaBlackout. Amputate their reach. Pour water on their flame.

— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) August 19, 2014

From here on out, I won't share any photo or video of violence intentionally recorded & released by ISIS for propaganda. #ISISmediaBlackout

— Hend (@LibyaLiberty) August 19, 2014

Amry told the Guardian why she started the hashtag. After watching the video, she felt: “I was a voyeur, sharing a moment not intended for anyone but James, and his loved ones. Feeling angry, enraged, horrified, and helpless, I wanted to do something. Even an insignificant something.

“So I tweeted that we needed to start a media blackout of the propaganda this group was using as weapons of fear. I wanted to break the circle…I wanted to remove the audience, at least me as an audience. I guess other people felt the same.”

In a since deleted tweet, Foley’s sister Kelly Foley, commented:

Please honor James Foley and respect my family’s privacy. Don’t watch the video. Don’t share it. That’s not how life should be.

Foley’s mother, Diane, released a statement on the Free James Foley Facebook page.

foley facebook
The statement from James Foley’s mother posted on Facebook. Photograph: Free James Foley/Facebook Photograph: Find James Foley/Facebook

How social media giants have fought back

Twitter has responded to the swell of opinion, and begun to remove all tweets embedding Isis’s video or screenshots taken from it. In a seemingly unprecedented step, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, tweeted the following:

We have been and are actively suspending accounts as we discover them related to this graphic imagery. Thank you https://t.co/jaYQBKVbBF

— dick costolo (@dickc) August 20, 2014

Twitter has also pointed media and users to its policies on offensive content and images of deceased individuals.

In order to respect the wishes of loved ones, Twitter will remove imagery of deceased individuals in certain circumstances. Immediate family members and other authorised individuals may request the removal of images or video of deceased individuals, from when critical injury occurs to the moments before or after death.

When reviewing such media removal requests, Twitter considers public interest factors such as the newsworthiness of the content and may not be able to honor every request.

It is clear that the tweets showing explicit content relating to Foley’s death would contravene both of these policies.

YouTube, which removed the video swiftly after its initial upload, told the Guardian that it doesn’t allow members of foreign terrorist organisations to have YouTube accounts, or people affiliated with terrorist organisations.

If a video was uploaded, the video would be removed and the account would be terminated.

However, if a news organisation uploaded a video without showing – in this case, the beheading – but part of the video in order to provide a news context, YouTube might allow the video to remain.

It would not be allowed to remain, even if the content was not explicit, if it was used for propaganda purposes, we were told.

Facebook and Instagram are yet to respond to the Guardian.

Why is the reaction to James Foley’s death different?

The responses of both Twitter and YouTube seem to contrast with a general lack of action regarding graphic content shared of the deaths of civilians during the current Israeli-Palestine conflict in Gaza, which also solicited much debate around the ethical implications.

A bit sick of people constantly sharing gruesome pictures of dead babies in Gaza. I know it's going on, I oppose it, I don't like it.

— Oliver James (@OliverJamesUK) August 1, 2014

You can pray for Gaza without sharing gory pictures. Thank you.

— Syed Azman (@AzmanV2) July 9, 2014

Instagram is a popular social platform among members of the Israel Defence Force, and footage uploaded has shown rockets being launched, and soldiers joking at base camps; as well as propaganda from Hamas-affiliated organisations and supporters.

There is currently an account loyal to Kurdish Peshmerga forces, depicting the deaths of captured Isis militants in brutal detail, none of which have been suspended or removed. As well as Iraqi forces videos of fighting.

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Of course, graphic images of violent terrorism or warfare is not a new phenomenon. In 2004, the “hoax” images of abuse at Abu Ghraib prison were splashed on the front page of the Mirror and led to Piers Morgan’s sacking; the rolling news coverage of people jumping from the Twin Towers during the September 11 attacks is seared into public consciousness.

twin towers
Hijacked United Airlines Flight 175 flies towards the Twin Towers. Photograph: STR/REUTERS Photograph: STR/REUTERS

In 2006, the video of the hanging of Suddam Hussein was uploaded and shared extensively. Similarly, the beheading of Ken Bigley in 2004 was circulated around the media.

Social media, however, has transformed this content into a rapid feed, almost stripping us of the option of deciding whether or not we want to see such graphic content. It’s pouring into our feeds and it’s unavoidable.

What has changed is the recent movement of social media companies cracking down on this content being available to view. What hasn’t changed is the apparent demand from some users to consume such gruesome content.

Isis respond

Twitter has deactivated numerous accounts run by Isis members and supporters in the last few weeks, including the @mujahid4life account which originally uploaded the video of Foley’s death, but it is well known that Isis has an extremely efficient social media operation.

The Guardian writers Patrick Kingsley and Carmen Fishwick have previously reported on their adept use of Justpaste.it and other hosting platforms. They even have a vocal press officer, Abu Mosa.

A Kurdish fighter pulls down a flag belonging to Islamic State militants. Photograph: STRINGER/IRAQ/REUTERS Photograph: STRINGER/IRAQ/REUTERS

As outrage spreads around the globe, Isis continue to adopt social media to further their cause of establishing an Islamic caliphate. The video of Foley’s execution came just a day after a video in which the group promised to “drown Americans in blood.

Politicians and government agencies have used Twitter to keep the public up to date on their thoughts and actions.

So, what does this mean?

What seemingly has changed in the wake of Foley’s death is that users and social media companies have openly condemned the content being shared; people do not want to see this imagery, and media platforms are responding.

It seems social media companies are beginning to take an editorial approach to the content they are hosting, and assuming an element of responsibility, shifting to a publishing role rather than merely providing a place for content.

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