[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ds-1col clearfix\u0022\u003E\n\n  \n\n  \n  \u003Cp\u003EWestern media recognized the Taliban\u2019s origin as a rebel Islamist force early on. An October 1995 \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E article described the Taliban as \u201can Islamic fundamentalist force.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EJohn F. Burns, \u201cIslamic Rebels Renew a Siege To Win Kabul,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, October 16, 1995, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1995\/10\/16\/world\/islamic-rebels-renew-a-siege-to-win-kabul.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1995\/10\/16\/world\/islamic-rebels-renew-a-siege-to-win-kabul.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E Media also recognized the chaos in Afghanistan caused by various warlords and contrasted that with the Taliban\u2019s goals. An October 1996 CNN article, for example, acknowledged the Taliban\u2019s fundamentalism but also noted that the group \u201cemerged as a reformist force\u2014honest, fierce, and devoutly Islamic.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EAnita Pratap, \u201cWho are the Taliban of Afghanistan?\u201d CNN, October 5, 1996, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/WORLD\/9610\/05\/taleban\/\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.cnn.com\/WORLD\/9610\/05\/taleban\/\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDuring the Taliban\u2019s 1996-2001 reign of Afghanistan, Western news outlets often addressed issues resulting from the group\u2019s implementation of sharia. The Taliban instituted restrictions on women, outdoor activity, and businesses.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EKnight-Ridder News Service, \u201cTaliban extend control to details of Kabul daily life 17 rules make it illegal to fly a kite, keep a bird,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EBaltimore Sun\u003C\/em\u003E, January 16, 1997, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/articles.baltimoresun.com\/1997-01-16\/news\/1997016056_1_kabul-taliban-mosque\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/articles.baltimoresun.com\/1997-01-16\/news\/1997016056_1_kabul-taliban-mosque\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E Taliban rule of law was \u201cintent on returning the capital to the Middle Ages,\u201d according to a 1996 article in Britain\u2019s \u003Cem\u003EIndependent\u003C\/em\u003E.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ERaymond Whitaker, \u201cKabul falls to the tide of the Taliban,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EIndependent\u003C\/em\u003E (London), Saturday 28, 1996, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/kabul-falls-to-the-tide-of-the-taliban-1365343.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/kabul-falls-to-the-tide-of-the-taliban-1365343.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 2000, the BBC asserted that the Taliban\u2019s rule caused \u201csome resentment among ordinary Afghans.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/south_asia\/144382.stm.\u003C\/span\u003E However, western media analysis highlighted the group\u2019s popularity due to its alleged efforts to fight corruption, restore order, and reinstate commerce.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk\/2\/hi\/south_asia\/144382.stm.\u003C\/span\u003E In 2001, the \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E described the Taliban as a \u201cmilitia\u201d that \u201ccraves recognition.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EBarry Bearak, \u201cOver World Protests, Taliban Are Destroying Ancient Buddhas,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, March 4, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/03\/04\/world\/over-world-protests-taliban-are-destroying-ancient-buddhas.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/03\/04\/world\/over-world-protests-taliban-are-destroying-ancient-buddhas.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Taliban\u2019s destruction of Afghanistan\u2019s ancient Buddhist statues in March 2001 earned widespread condemnation from Western governments and grabbed headlines in those countries. However, a \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E piece that month by Barbara Crossette told the Taliban\u2019s side of the story. Crossette acknowledged the Taliban\u2019s restrictions on women and enforcement of strict Islamic laws, but offered no counter perspective and relied solely on a Taliban spokesman as a source.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EBarbara Crossette, \u201cTaliban Explains Buddha Demolition,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, March 19, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/03\/19\/world\/19TALI.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/03\/19\/world\/19TALI.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E Another \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E article in December 2001, after the Taliban\u2019s fall, painted a picture of an Afghanistan suffering under fundamentalist rules.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EBarry Bearak, \u201cA NATIONAL CHALLENGED: AFTERMATH; Where Buddhas Fell, Lives Lie in Ruins Too,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, December 9, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/12\/09\/world\/a-nation-challenged-aftermath-where-buddhas-fell-lives-lie-in-ruins-too.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/12\/09\/world\/a-nation-challenged-aftermath-where-buddhas-fell-lives-lie-in-ruins-too.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Taliban had already featured in international headlines for its refusal to turn over Osama bin Laden. Five days after the attacks, a piece in the London-based \u003Cem\u003EGuardian\u003C\/em\u003E called the Taliban \u201ca \u2018virtual state\u2019 wrecked by 20 years of war in a state abandoned by the trappings of the modern era.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EPeter Beaumont, Tim Judah, and Paul Beaver, \u201cUS seeks ways to wage war against an unseen enemy,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EGuardian\u003C\/em\u003E (London), September 16, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2001\/sep\/16\/september11.terrorism1\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2001\/sep\/16\/september11.terrorism1\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E On September 21, 2001, then-President of the United States George W. Bush gave a final ultimatum to the Taliban to turn over bin Laden. It received widespread international coverage.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003E\u201cBush gives Taliban ultimatum,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EDaily Telegraph\u003C\/em\u003E (London), September 21, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/1341196\/Bush-gives-Taliban-ultimatum.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/1341196\/Bush-gives-Taliban-ultimatum.html\u003C\/a\u003E; \u201cWhite House warns Taliban: \u2018We will defeat you,\u2019\u201d CNN, September 21, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2001\/WORLD\/asiapcf\/central\/09\/21\/ret.afghan.taliban\/index.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2001\/WORLD\/asiapcf\/central\/09\/21\/ret.afghan.taliban\/index.html\u003C\/a\u003E; \u201cThe US refuses to negotiate with the Taliban,\u201d BBC History, accessed April 13, 2015, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/history\/events\/the_us_refuses_to_negotiate_with_the_taliban\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/history\/events\/the_us_refuses_to_negotiate_with_the_taliban\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFollowing the Taliban\u2019s removal from power in late 2001, \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E columnist Thomas L. Friedman likened bin Laden\u2019s image in the Arab world to that of Robin Hood. Given this image, Friedman wrote, there could be open debate on him only after his removal\u2014just as the Taliban had been recently removed.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EThomas L. Friedman, \u201cTerrorist Software,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, November 23, 2001, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/11\/23\/opinion\/23FRIE.html\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2001\/11\/23\/opinion\/23FRIE.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter the fall of the Taliban regime, the western media often portrayed the Taliban as a harmful force in regard to the Afghan populace. The \u003Cem\u003EWall Street Journal\u003C\/em\u003E\u2019s Yaroslav Trofimov discussed in March 2010 how the Taliban forced cell phone carriers to suspend their services during the night to make it harder for informants to alert coalition troops about their movements. Trofimov highlighted the harm that this brought to businesses and the population\u2019s dampened ability to access medical care.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EYaroslav Trofimov, \u201cCell Carriers Bow to Taliban Threat,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EWall Street Journal\u003C\/em\u003E, March 22, 2010, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/SB10001424052748704117304575137541465235972\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/SB10001424052748704117304575137541465235972\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnother example can be seen leading up to Afghanistan\u2019s elections in 2010, when Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid stated that \u201cpresidential elections expected this year are a sham\u201d and that attacks on parliamentary members and civilians would occur if elections proceeded.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ENic Robertson, \u201cAfghan Taliban spokesman: We will win the war,\u201d CNN, May 5, 2009, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2009\/WORLD\/asiapcf\/05\/04\/robertson.interview.zabiullah.mujahid\/index.html?iref=topnews\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2009\/WORLD\/asiapcf\/05\/04\/robertson.interview.zabiullah.mujahid\/index.html?iref=topnews\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E The western media also discussed the Taliban in terms of Pakistani ISI support and relations to the Pakistani Taliban, citing statements by Afghan officials such as \u201cthe [Pakistani] ISI was \u2018part of the landscape of destruction\u2019 in Afghanistan\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003E\u201cPakistani agents \u2018funding and training Afghan Taliban,\u201d BBC News, June 13, 2010, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/10302946\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/10302946\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E or reports of Taliban leader Mullah Omar hiding out in Quetta, Pakistan.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003E\u201cWho are the Taliban?\u201d BBC News, November 1, 2013, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-south-asia-11451718\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-south-asia-11451718\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E Reports on the Taliban have therefore become increasingly international in scope as the U.S. coalition has come under heavy attacks by Afghan insurgents and the Taliban\u2019s ties to Pakistan have become clearer.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs the Taliban returned to their roots as a rebel force and increased their violent attacks, the Western media dropped their reference to the Taliban as a governing entity.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EReuters, the \u003Cem\u003ENew York Post\u003C\/em\u003E, the Associated Press, and other media outlets regularly refer to the Taliban as an insurgent or militant group. An April 2015 Reuters article, for example, makes no mention that the Taliban once controlled Afghanistan.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EMirwais Harooni, \u201cTaliban kill three police, kidnap 19 de-miners in Afghanistan,\u201d Reuters, April 20, 2015, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/2015\/04\/20\/us-afghanistan-attack-idUSKBN0NB0QG20150420\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/2015\/04\/20\/us-afghanistan-attack-idUSKBN0NB0QG20150420\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E A reader unfamiliar with Afghanistan\u2019s history could infer that the Taliban is nothing more than a violent rebel group.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAn April 2015 \u003Cem\u003ENew York Post\u003C\/em\u003E article painted both the Taliban and ISIS in a negative light. Author Bill Sanderson wrote that ISIS\u2019s bombing of a Kabul bank \u201cwas even denounced by the murderous Taliban.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EBill Sanderson, \u201cTaliban condemns ISIS for deadly bombing in Afghanistan,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Post\u003C\/em\u003E, April 18, 2015, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/nypost.com\/2015\/04\/18\/suicide-bomb-attack-kills-at-least-30-people-in-afghanistan\/\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/nypost.com\/2015\/04\/18\/suicide-bomb-attack-kills-at-least-30-people-in-afghanistan\/\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E While Sanderson gave details of the Taliban\u2019s condemnation, the article clearly regarded the Taliban as a terrorist group, no better than ISIS.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEven during the Taliban\u2019s rule of Afghanistan, Western media typically acknowledged the group\u2019s violent path to power and the refusal of global powers to recognize the Taliban government. While the Western media report on groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas mixing politics with their extremist goals, media outlets appear to have wholly recognized the Taliban as nothing more than a violent, Islamist insurgency.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n","dialogOptions":{"minWidth":850,"resizable":true,"modal":true,"title":"Western Media"}},{"command":"doFootnotes"}]