Click the following link(s) to learn more about U.S. propaganda after 9/11:
On September 11, 2001, the Islamic terrorist group Al-Qaeda attacked four U.S. landmarks via suicide bombers. Nearly 3,000 people were killed and over 6,000 were injured.
Following the tragic events that occurred in the United States on September 11, 74% of Americans aged 18–54 turned to television as their first source for information and guidance in the wake of the attacks. CBS anchorman Dan Rather called the weeks following the attacks, ‘a great moment for American journalism’ due to the dangerous lengths reporters went to acquire footage, the sharing of images and videos between news stations, and the general composure of anchors despite the tragedy. However, personal biases were present on several news stations. American were influenced by the loaded language used by Tom Brokaw at NBC and Dan Rather at CBS in their reports – language that promoted retaliation as the appropriate response to the attacks. A few examples of Rather’s loaded language include the following statements:
Print journalism also featured its share of propaganda after the attacks. For example, Time magazine printed a special issue dedicated to the events that occurred on September 11. The back cover of this issue features an essay titled ‘The Case for Rage and Retribution.’ In it, Lance Morrow states, ‘A day cannot live in infamy without the nourishment of rage. Let’s have rage. What’s needed is a unified, unifying, Pearl Harbor sort of purple American fury’, a fury that should not look at the reasons why, what he calls ‘thoughtful relativism’. He encourages Americans to utilize hatred as weapon towards ‘the people who did these things, and the people who cheer them on.’ This is black propaganda. Morrow uses biased phrasing and encourages violence against a whole group of people.
Additionally, the study Islam through editorial lenses: How American elite newspapers portrayed Muslims before and after September 11, 2001 shows that The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and New York Times’ portrayal of Muslims significantly differed after September 11. The three newspapers all had a prominent decrease in favorable terms when referring to Muslims. The study found an overwhelming consensus among American newspapers in their unfavorable portrayal of Muslims.
These are just a few examples of U.S. propaganda immediately following the September 11 attacks. Though the attacks were committed by Muslims, not all Muslims were responsible for the attack, despite much of the U.S. propaganda spread following that day.
Following the tragic events that occurred in the United States on September 11, 74% of Americans aged 18–54 turned to television as their first source for information and guidance in the wake of the attacks. CBS anchorman Dan Rather called the weeks following the attacks, ‘a great moment for American journalism’ due to the dangerous lengths reporters went to acquire footage, the sharing of images and videos between news stations, and the general composure of anchors despite the tragedy. However, personal biases were present on several news stations. American were influenced by the loaded language used by Tom Brokaw at NBC and Dan Rather at CBS in their reports – language that promoted retaliation as the appropriate response to the attacks. A few examples of Rather’s loaded language include the following statements:
- Rather announces the results of new polls – he does not say by whom, nor how many were polled – that indicate widespread American public support for retaliation.
- ‘It is not a declared war, but a war just the same.’
- ‘While the evidence is still in the early stages, sources say all of it points like a compass to Osama bin Laden.’
Print journalism also featured its share of propaganda after the attacks. For example, Time magazine printed a special issue dedicated to the events that occurred on September 11. The back cover of this issue features an essay titled ‘The Case for Rage and Retribution.’ In it, Lance Morrow states, ‘A day cannot live in infamy without the nourishment of rage. Let’s have rage. What’s needed is a unified, unifying, Pearl Harbor sort of purple American fury’, a fury that should not look at the reasons why, what he calls ‘thoughtful relativism’. He encourages Americans to utilize hatred as weapon towards ‘the people who did these things, and the people who cheer them on.’ This is black propaganda. Morrow uses biased phrasing and encourages violence against a whole group of people.
Additionally, the study Islam through editorial lenses: How American elite newspapers portrayed Muslims before and after September 11, 2001 shows that The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and New York Times’ portrayal of Muslims significantly differed after September 11. The three newspapers all had a prominent decrease in favorable terms when referring to Muslims. The study found an overwhelming consensus among American newspapers in their unfavorable portrayal of Muslims.
These are just a few examples of U.S. propaganda immediately following the September 11 attacks. Though the attacks were committed by Muslims, not all Muslims were responsible for the attack, despite much of the U.S. propaganda spread following that day.