Terrorism Issues in American News Channels: A Comparative Analysis Study

This research investigates the media portrayal of terrorism, focusing on how American news channels contextualize issues based on specific agendas and private interests. It particularly analyzes the policies and editorial frameworks of CNN and Fox News, exploring the similarities and differences in their discourse strategies and production methodologies. The study scrutinizes the extent to which each network employs particular narrative frames in their coverage of terrorism, both within the United States and internationally. Furthermore, it examines the relationship between each channel's type—whether it is liberal or conservative—and its coverage framework, assessing how these aspects correlate with established media strategies and professional standards. The objective is to elucidate the impact of media framing on public perception and to contribute to the discourse on media influence in shaping political and social realities. The comprehensive analysis of the study highlights the disparities in terrorism coverage by CNN and Fox News, influenced by their differing policies and agendas. While there were some similarities in the structure and emphasis on terrorism, the core quality of their coverage varied significantly. Fox News adopted an "Islamophobia" framework, portraying Islamic Sharia as a fundamental threat to Western civilization and advocating for restrictive immigration policies to curb the influx of Muslims from terrorism-prone regions. This approach aligns with previous findings by Kumar (2008), who identified pervasive negative stereotypes of Muslims, Arabs, and the Middle East in Western media post-September 11, depicting Islam as inherently violent. In contrast, CNN avoided this Islamophobic narrative, instead treating terrorism as a non-denominational humanitarian issue. This stance reflects former President Obama's repeated assertions that terrorism should not be associated with Islam, a view criticized by Fox News. Moreover, the professionalism in reporting terrorism differed markedly between the networks. CNN displayed more objectivity and professionalism, whereas Fox News, often seen as propagandistic and aligned with Trump's campaign rhetoric, exploited terrorist incidents to advocate for policy changes targeting Islamic terrorism. This was evident in their unbalanced reporting, use of charged language, and other biased journalistic practices. The study also touched on the broader impact of biased media portrayals, noting an increase in incidents against Islamic centers, driven by media-fueled hatred, as reported by CAIR in 2016. This highlights the significant consequences of media bias, not just in misinforming the public but in fostering divisiveness and violence.