Marcucci 1

Dante Marcucci

Professor Lori Bedell

CAS 137H 001

7 October 2017

ISIS Propaganda: A Look into Excellence

Terrorist attacks shake Americans to their core. The scariest part of any attack is not the

damage done, but the questions that it brings to the forefront of our minds. “What if that was my

family?” “Where will they strike next?” Most distressingly, “How would someone be driven to

do something so horrible?” Americans have been spoiled by their distance from the rest of the

world and the relative safety provided by this distance. While Americans have been lucky, the

Islamic State has worked to ensure that the rest of the world is not so lucky, continuing violence

in the Middle East through warfare and broadcast media. In their propaganda, the Islamic State

uses rhetoric more effectively than the United States does. ISIS has capitalized upon American

ideologies, the kairotic situation, ethos, and pathos by using propaganda videos to reach potential

recruits, inciting violence and hatred towards the United States.

The United States propagates the ideology of the glory of war and the commonplace of

pride in our military, which ISIS twists for its own benefit. This love of military permeates

society in all forms of media, where civilians are reminded incessantly of veterans who put their

lives on the line and earned glory on the battlefield. This pride in military, often referred to as

patriotism, is uniquely American and extremely valuable to the government for its ability to

unify Americans against everchanging exigences. By glorifying our military and reminding

citizens of the wars of the past, the United States builds up the ideology surrounding the glory of

war. ISIS then uses this same ideology to bolster their own cause. As shown by the propaganda
 Marcucci 2

video, ISIS advertises a chance to earn glory through war, allowing recruits to fight and earn the

respect of their comrades. Utilizing the familiar commonplace of war as a proving ground, the

Islamic State convinces recruits to fight against the United States by advertising the glory of war.

To fight the Islamic State, the United States tries to show the faults in the ideology of

ISIS, but these attempts fall flat, because the United States shares these flaws with the Islamic

State. In showing these faults, the United States is trying to reach the same audience as the

Islamic State, middle eastern citizens who are unsure of which side to take. American

propaganda videos, forced to brandish the State Department seal, must convince the audience

that ISIS cannot be trusted despite the video’s obvious bias. The most well-known and

controversial of these American anti-ISIS videos, “Welcome to Islamic State Land,” focuses on

betrayal and the brutal murder of Muslims committed by the Islamic State. “Welcome to Islamic

State Land” shows graphic images of members of ISIS being shot in the back, making the clear

statement that ISIS betrays its own. This rhetorical argument falls short, however, because in the

past, the United States has shown no mercy on those deemed to be traitors, exemplified by

America’s treatment of Edward Snowden. The most graphic and egregious of ISIS’s crimes may

be the brutal murder of Muslims and other civilians. The video displays the results of these

senseless ISIS-led attacks and executions. An uncomfortable fact of the matter, though, is that

American remote bombing attacks have killed an unnecessarily high number of civilians.

Through their creativity and skill with rhetoric, ISIS deflects any criticisms by the United States

by showcasing American hypocrisy within these same topics.

Using negative attitudes toward the United States, the Islamic State exploits the kairotic

situation of America and the Middle East. To understand the kairotic situation, one must

understand some history from the region. The United States declared war on Iraq in 2003. After
 Marcucci 3

removing Saddam Hussein, the US worked hard to establish new central leadership for and by

the local citizens of Iraq. The prolonged presence of foreigners, however, increased tensions

between locals and the United States, which formed the current kairotic situation within Iraq.

Recognizing this kairotic situation formed by American occupation and the opportunity provided

by fighting within Syria, the Islamic State formed, hoping to create global jihad (Glenn). ISIS

uses the frustrations of Iraqi locals to demonize America and fuel a global holy war. In the

Islamic State propaganda video, ISIS relates Americans to evil and destruction by juxtaposing

flames and American troops with scenes of explosions and brutal warfare. Identifying the

kairotic situation that has been building over more than a decade, ISIS uses Iraqi frustrations to

strengthen their own cause and ensure the continuation of their mission towards global jihad.

Just as the Islamic State so keenly recognizes and exploits kairos, the United States fails

to acknowledge the kairotic situation. In “Welcome to Islamic State Land,” the United States

goes on the offensive against ISIS as it calls out the many faults of the Islamic State. The

decision to go on the offensive is bold, but this choice does not consider America’s place in the

eyes of the audience. The Islamic State has built upon the kairotic situation to convince their

audiences that America is destructive, and, by being the aggressor, the United States has

complied in furthering that message. In order to stop their losses against the Islamic State,

America must consider kairos to the same extent that ISIS scrutinizes pathos and ethos.

The Islamic State utilizes pathos to reach the emotions of viewers and ethos to reinforce

their stated position as a righteous savior within their community, both of which strengthen the

volatile rhetoric presented by the ISIS propaganda video. At a time that people are feeling

disconnected and lost, ISIS offers an identity and camaraderie. The Islamic State pounces on

emotionally vulnerable individuals suffering from a lack of identity, hoping to take advantage of
 Marcucci 4

them. Effectively employing pathos, the Islamic State offers an identity and camaraderie to those

who seek it. An important part of the Islamic State’s propaganda video is the focus on the group

dynamic. Many of the video scenes focus on the groups of men connecting with each other; an

entire minute of the video is dedicated to the soldiers standing around and talking to one another.

Recognizing the kairotic situation, the Islamic State uses ethos to paint itself as the righteous

counterpoint to America. Convincing the Iraqi public that America is unwanted is not difficult;

those reaching fighting age have had two constants through their life: American occupation and

warfare. The Islamic State offers locals a chance to fight against these “infidels” who have

occupied their homeland for more than a decade. The Islamic State exploits the situation to build

ethos with the locals. ISIS utilizes pathos to connect with viewers, offering camaraderie and an

identity, while simultaneously employing ethos to depict itself as a righteous defender against the

evil United States.

While ISIS bolsters its rhetoric with pathos and ethos, the United States manages to

weaken its own rhetorical arguments with these same principles. America’s video focuses on

attacking the arguments of the Islamic State, so much so that it comes off as heartless and fear-

mongering. There is no way for the audience to connect with the pathos of the American

propaganda, because, as the United States fixates on fighting the arguments of ISIS, they fail to

provide an alternative with which the audience can connect. A by-product of these ruthless

arguments is an inability to build ethos with the audience. The audience that America is trying to

reach, those who are on the cusp of supporting ISIS, does not want a heartless organization,

because the Islamic State already does that and does it better. The audience wants a friendlier

alternative. Instead, they are greeted by the State Department seal, a symbol of the group who

issues the bombing orders that have destroyed their homeland, effectively putting off any of the
 Marcucci 5

remaining locals who were previously on the edge. Due to the United States’ inability to

effectively use ethos and pathos, the video’s emotional and character arguments weaken rather

than strengthen the American rhetoric.

The Islamic State takes advantage of American ideologies, the kairotic situation, pathos,

and ethos to incite violence and hatred towards the United States in their propaganda videos.

Using pathos and ethos, the Islamic State convinces observers that ISIS is a righteous rebel

against a destructive United States while offering camaraderie and identity to those who seek it,

meanwhile America fails to take advantage of ethos and pathos at all. In a way that America

cannot seem to match, ISIS recognizes the kairotic moment and seizes it to fuel their mission of

continued violence. Strengthening their goal of sustained violence, the Islamic State creatively

crafts their propaganda using the American ideology of the glorification of war, hampering the

United States’ ability to counter this propaganda without appearing hypocritical. ISIS is an evil

organization, but they are undoubtedly good at effectively using rhetoric to spread their message.
 Marcucci 6

Works Cited

Fernando, Alberto M. “Here to stay and growing: Combating ISIS propaganda networks.” The

Brookings Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World, October 2015,

www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/IS-Propaganda_Web_English.pdf.

Accessed 10 Sept. 2017.

Glenn, Cameron. “Timeline: Rise and Spread of the Islamic State.” The Wilson Center, 5 July

2016, www.wilsoncenter.org/article/timeline-rise-and-spread-the-islamic-state. Accessed

1 Oct. 2017.

Miller, Greg, and Scott Higham. “In a propaganda war against ISIS, the U.S. tried to play by the

enemy’s rules.” The Washington Post, 8 May 2015,

www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/in-a-propaganda-war-us-tried-to-play-

by-the-enemys-rules/2015/05/08/6eb6b732-e52f-11e4-81ea-

0649268f729e_story.html?utm_term=.5d810a86ee83. Accessed 19 Sep. 2017.

Tomson, Chris. “+18 graphic propaganda video: ISIS conducts deadly raids across

western Iraq.” Al Masdar News, 5 June 2017, www.almasdarnews.com/article/18-

graphic-propaganda-video-isis-conducts-deadly-raids-across-western-iraq/.

Vlogger. “Welcome to the Islamic State Land.” Military.com, 9 Sep. 2014,

www.military.com/video/operations-and-strategy/terrorism/welcome-to-the-islamic-state-

land/3775821940001.

Winter, Charlie, and Jordan Bach-Lombardo. “Why ISIS Propaganda Works: And why stopping

it requires that governments step out of the way.” The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2016,

www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/02/isis-propaganda-war/462702/.

Accessed 10 Sep. 2017.