Interesting report on jihadist groups use of Internet
Thanks to the blog Abu Aadrvark George Washington University prof Marc Lynch, I saw an interesting study commissioned by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (yes, they still exist) about Al Qaeda uses the Internet to get its message across.
You can download a full copy of the report at http://docs.rferl.org/en-US/AQ_Media_Nexus.pdf.
One intersting conclusion is that while Al-Qaeda has long been seen as tech-savvy in its use of the Internet to get its messages out, it is only now beginning to take advantage of the interactive nature of Web 2.0. (And catching on real fast.) Much of its material is Web 1.0 based in that it is static material distributed with little or no expectation of feedback.
And while the videos get the attention of the mainstream media, the overwhelming majority of material posted by the jihadist groups is still text.
This is useful reading for anyone interested in better understanding how the Internet is affecting everything right down to terrorism recruitment and publicity.