Terrorism has been a media buzzword ever since the 9/11 attacks. Just the word “terrorism” makes people immediately think of the World Trade Centers, The Boston Marathon, France, and now Brussels. And there are even more in recent history that were, unfortunately, less publicized (such as attacks in the Middle East and African nations). According to the Institute for Economics and Peace’s annual Global Terrorism Index, the countries with the most terrorism were Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Syria. And even though these attacks never got much media attention in the United States, they accounted for 78% of all terrorism-linked deaths in 2015.
Boko Haram was the single deadliest terrorist organization in 2014, but they were in and out of the news cycle quickly. The recent Pakistan Easter Attacks showed up a few times on my newsfeed but the only posts were from my most globally aware Facebook friends. Then the next day it was as if it never happened. The news of a new attack always comes as a surprise, but it’s our job as media consumers and citizens of the world to react in a responsible and productive way.
1. Educate yourself and others
Read multiple sources and find out as much information as possible. The media isn’t always accurate and is often biased, so you are responsible for using reliable sources, such as CSPAN, BBC, and The Wall Street Journal. Ask critical questions and look for answers, and encourage those around you to do the same. Fear-mongering and ignorance only perpetuate more hateful biases, so it’s imperative to do your own research and help educate those who are more likely to believe whatever shows up on their newsfeed.
2. Don’t generalize blame
You’d think this wouldn’t be a problem in 2016 but sadly some people still like to blame whole religions, races, and cultures for the actions of a few individuals. ISIS is killing more Muslims than any other group, but people still like to say that Islam promotes these types of fundamental extremist groups. We will never progress as a global community if we are held back by this kind of ignorance, or if we allow the media to feed us misinformation.
3. Find ways to help
This one is easier said than done. If you really want to help you need to do research to find organizations and groups that are effectively helping. In the recent Brussels attacks, TIME Magazine did the hard work and posted an article about ways to provide aid and assistance by doing things like donating and even suggesting people offer their homes to people in need of shelter. Rather than simply changing profile pictures and praying for the lives lost, be an active global citizen in both sharing truthful information as well as helping those who have been affected by these tragedies.
4. Remember that there is a lot of good in the world too.
After hearing story after story of such tragedies, it’s easy to feel like the world is a bleak, heinous wasteland filled with violence and scumbags. But that’s just not the case. Even after these atrocities occur (which are usually committed by a small group of such scumbags) you will see hundreds of thousands of people stepping up to help. There is a lot of evil in this world but there is also an awful lot of good, and you can easily be a part of that good.