[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ds-1col clearfix\u0022\u003E\n\n  \n\n  \n  \u003Cp\u003EUntil the kidnapping of 200 schoolgirls in Chibok in  April 2014 leading to a global outcry and large-scale media coverage of Boko  Haram, Western coverage of the group has been limited and restricted to  sporadic attention following the violent attacks of the group in recent years.  While its aspiration as an Al Qaeda-like organization and its links to transnational  terrorist organizations have been noted in the media, the group has been mainly viewed as a domestic terrorist organization fueled by local grievances and  sectarian tension, which reflects the assessment of most Western governments of  the group. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBoko Haram first rose to international attention following  violent clashes with Nigerian police forces in July 2009. While one of the  nicknames of the group, \u201cNigerian Taliban,\u201d was picked up by the Western press, \u003Cem\u003EThe Guardian\u003C\/em\u003E\u2019s David Smith emphasized  the domestic focus of the group around local grievances and sectarian tensions,  arguing that Boko Haram \u201cmodels itself on the Taliban but has no known link.\u201d\n\n\u003C!--163--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EDavid  Smith, \u201cNigerian \u0027Taliban\u0027 offensive leaves 150 dead,\u201d\u003Cem\u003E Guardian\u003C\/em\u003E, July 27, 2009, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2011\/nov\/08\/nigerian-taliban-us-boko-haram\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2011\/nov\/08\/nigerian-taliban-us-boko-haram\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EWith the frequency, scale, and violence of attacks by  Boko Haram increasing since 2010, media coverage of the group became more  frequent. Yet the exact nature of the group remained elusive to many  commentators. In \u003Cem\u003EThe\u003C\/em\u003E \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, Jean Herskovits argued \u201c[T]here  is no proof that a well-organized, ideologically coherent terrorist group  called Boko Haram even exists today. Evidence suggests instead that, while the  original core of the group remains active, criminal gangs have adopted the name  Boko Haram to claim responsibility for attacks when it suits them.\u201d\n\u003C!--164--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EJean  Herskovits \u201cIn Nigeria, Boko Haram Is Not the Problem,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, January 2, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2012\/01\/02\/opinion\/in-nigeria-boko-haram-is-not-the-problem.html?pagewanted=all\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2012\/01\/02\/opinion\/in-nigeria-boko-haram-is-not-the-problem.html?pagewanted=all\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n\n Similarly Reuters\u2019 Joe Brook asked, \u201cIs Boko Haram just the latest in a long  list of violent spasms in Nigeria, or is it the next battalion of global  jihadists, capable of thrusting Africa\u0027s most populous nation into civil war?\u201d \u0026nbsp;He went on to argue that \u201cBoko Haram remains  firmly focused on domestic Nigerian issues.\u201d \u0026nbsp;However a \u201csmall, increasingly ambitious and  sophisticated group of extremists controls the very top of the group. \u0026nbsp;A handful of those members have received  training outside Nigeria, including from AQIM.\u201d\n\u003C!--165--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EJoe  Brook, \u201cSpecial Report: Boko Haram - between rebellion and jihad,\u201d Reuters,January 31, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/uk.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/01\/31\/us-nigeria-bokoharam-idUSTRE80U0LR20120131\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/uk.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/01\/31\/us-nigeria-bokoharam-idUSTRE80U0LR20120131\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen Boko Haram bombed a UN building in Nigeria\u2019s  capital Abuja in August 2011, links of the group to international terrorist  organizations such as al-Qaeda were widely mentioned in the press based on both  the type of target and sophistication of the attack. Nigeria\u2019s Minister of  State for Foreign Affairs was cited by the BBC saying \u201cThis is not an attack on  Nigeria but on the global community,\u201d she said. \u201cAn attack on the world.\u201d\n\u003C!--166--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003E\u201cAbuja  attack: Car bomb hits Nigeria UN building,\u201d BBC News, August 27, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/world-africa-14677957\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/world-africa-14677957\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n \u0026nbsp;Following a proliferation of further attacks,  the U.S. army starts to provide counter-insurgency training to Nigerian troops  to combat what was described in the Guardian as an \u201carmed Islamic insurgency.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFollowing a statement by Abubakar Shekau posted on YouTube  in January 2012, stating that Boko Haram was \u201cat war with Christians,\u201d media  reports begin to highlight Boko Haram\u2019s global ambition, arguing that \u201cthe  group\u0027s leadership would like to be seen as part of a global jihad.\u201d\n\u003C!--167--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EJoe  Brook, \u201cSpecial Report: Boko Haram - between rebellion and jihad,\u201d Reuters,January 31, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/uk.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/01\/31\/us-nigeria-bokoharam-idUSTRE80U0LR20120131\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/uk.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/01\/31\/us-nigeria-bokoharam-idUSTRE80U0LR20120131\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs Boko Haram began to professionalize its attacks,  the group also began to manage its relationship with Western media outlets in a  different way. \u0026nbsp;Rather than allowing  individual members of the group to talk to a range of journalists, a spokesperson  with the name of \u201cAbu Qaqa\u201d begins to appear and contact journalists to link  attacks to Boko Haram. \u0026nbsp;At the same time,  the leader of the Abubakar Shekau begins to frequently post videos of the group  on YouTube. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn January 2012, Abu Qaqa agreed to an exclusive  interview with the Guardian attempting to justify the group\u2019s violent attacks  with the failure of the Nigerian government and portraying Boko Haram as a  popular movement. \u0026nbsp;\u201cIt\u0027s the secular  state that is responsible for the woes we are seeing today. People should  understand that we are not saying we have to rule Nigeria, but we have been  motivated by the stark injustice in the land. People underrate us but we have  our sights set on [bringing sharia to] the whole world, not just Nigeria\u2026 People  were singing songs in [northern cities] Kano and Kaduna saying: \u2018We want Boko  Haram.\u2019\u201d\n\u003C!--168--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EMonica  Mark, \u201cBoko Haram vows to fight until Nigeria establishes sharia law,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EGuardian\u003C\/em\u003E, January 27, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2012\/jan\/27\/boko-haram-nigeria-sharia-law\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2012\/jan\/27\/boko-haram-nigeria-sharia-law\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAs Boko Haram\u2019s attacks particularly against  Christians continued and escalated, the U.S. Department of State came under  increasing pressure by Congress and the Justice Department to designate the  group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). \u0026nbsp;With a group of prominent academics urging then-Secretary  of State Hillary Clinton to refrain from a designation, a public debate ensues  in the U.S. over the question. \u0026nbsp;Picking  up on this point, the International Business Times emphasizes the limited  usefulness of a designation concluding that \u201cthe U.S. needs to stop treating  this as a security issue and start treating it for what it is\u2014a political  issue.\u201d\n\u003C!--169--\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ERyan  Villarreal, U.S., \u201cNigeria at odds over designation of Boko Haram as Terrorist  Organisation,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EInternational Business Times,\u003C\/em\u003E May 29, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.ibtimes.com\/us-nigeria-odds-over-designation-boko-haram-terrorist-organization-700515\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.ibtimes.com\/us-nigeria-odds-over-designation-boko-haram-terrorist-organization-700515\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIt was the kidnapping of 200 girls in April 2014 in  the state of Chibok that led to large-scale Western media coverage of Boko  Haram, prompting a global social media campaign in response. \u0026nbsp;But despite global attention, the response of  Western governments remained limited. Commenting in the Washington Post, Sarah  Chayes argued that \u201camid the pressure to respond to the anguish, the United  States is right not to overdo its counterterrorism assistance to Abuja,\u201d stating  that \u201cmuch of the responsibility for the rise of the Boko Haram extremist group  may lie with the Nigerian government itself.\u201d\n\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ESarah  Chayes \u201cNigeria\u2019s Boko Haram isn\u2019t just about Western education,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EWashington Post\u003C\/em\u003E, Max 16, 2014, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/nigerias-boko-haram-isnt-just-about-western-education\/2014\/05\/16\/d9bb5824-d9de-11e3-bda1-9b46b2066796_story.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/opinions\/nigerias-boko-haram-isnt-just-about-western-education\/2014\/05\/16\/d9bb5824-d9de-11e3-bda1-9b46b2066796_story.html\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n In the  midst of the widespread public outrage over the kidnapping of the girls, media  attention returns to the question of why Boko Haram had not been targeted by  the U.S. administration earlier and designated as an FTO.\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EColin  Freeman, \u201cMissing Nigerian girls: whatever happened to #Bringbackourgirls?\u201d \u003Cem\u003ETelegraph\u003C\/em\u003E, July 14, 2014, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/worldnews\/africaandindianocean\/nigeria\/10947211\/Missing-Nigerian-girls-whatever-happened-to-Bringbackourgirls.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/worldnews\/africaandindianocean\/nigeria\/10947211\/Missing-Nigerian-girls-whatever-happened-to-Bringbackourgirls.html\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhile Western media interest in Boko Haram has  increased over the last years, most commentators continue to view the  activities of the group predominately through a prism of domestic grievances  rather than a regional or global jihadist agenda. \u0026nbsp;However, commentators increasingly compare  Boko Haram to other regional terrorist groups and point to an agenda that is  more regionally rather domestically focused. \u0026nbsp;Thus, Colin Freeman argued in \u003Cem\u003EThe\u003C\/em\u003E \u003Cem\u003ETelegraph\u003C\/em\u003E that \u201clike al-Shabaab in Somalia and Isis in Syria and Iraq, a group that was  unheard just a few years ago is now a major threat to the stability of the  region.\u201d\n\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EColin  Freeman, \u201cMissing Nigerian girls: whatever happened to #Bringbackourgirls?\u201d \u003Cem\u003ETelegraph\u003C\/em\u003E, July 14, 2014, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/worldnews\/africaandindianocean\/nigeria\/10947211\/Missing-Nigerian-girls-whatever-happened-to-Bringbackourgirls.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/worldnews\/africaandindianocean\/nigeria\/10947211\/Missing-Nigerian-girls-whatever-happened-to-Bringbackourgirls.html\u003C\/a\u003E. \u003C\/span\u003E\n \u0026nbsp;Similarly Robin Simcox stated on Al Jazeera  English that \u201cignoring the long-standing connections Boko Haram has to  al-Qaeda, or betting that Boko Haram\u0027s focus will remain local is not a policy.  It is willful blindness.\u201d\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ERobin  Simcox, \u201cBoko Haram and defining the \u2018al Qaeda network,\u2019\u201d Al Jazeera, June 6,  2014, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/indepth\/opinion\/2014\/06\/boko-haram-al-qaeda-201463115816142554.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/indepth\/opinion\/2014\/06\/boko-haram-al-qaeda-201463115816142554.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n","dialogOptions":{"minWidth":850,"resizable":true,"modal":true,"title":"Western Media"}},{"command":"doFootnotes"}]