Introduction
The 1972 attack at the Munich Olympic Games is among the most memorable terror events to have occurred in the last century. The Black September group, which was affiliated with the Palestine Liberation Organization, claimed responsibility for the attack (Doubek, 2022). Terrorists invaded an Olympic Village in Munich, Germany, killed two members of the Israeli sports team, and abducted others (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022).
Rescue operations to save the hostages failed, and five out of the eight terrorists who launched the attacks were killed while three were arrested (Doubek, 2022). The 1972 Summer Olympic Games terror event highlights the vulnerability that people experience when visiting or residing in foreign lands. This paper evaluates the effects of terror reporting on events during the games.
Analysis of Communication Methods Deployed
The Black September terror group was made up of a team of assailants hailing from the Fatah paramilitary group, based in Palestine. The outfit had offshoots in the Kingdom of Jordan and fought proxy wars in the region and out of it to address various political causes, including liberating the people of Palestine from “Israeli oppression” (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Communication was an essential tool for planning the 1972 terror attack (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022). Members of the Palestine-based terrorist organization used negotiation as their main communication met
hod. Notably, they demanded the release of more than 200 Palestinian prisoners arrested by Israeli authorities in exchange for nine hostages abducted during the siege (Haddad, 2020). They used the negotiation technique unsuccessfully because the Israeli government had a policy of non-engagement with terrorists (Tamir & Galily, 2022). However, Black September successfully convinced the German government to provide it with air evacuation support to a friendly Arab state. The negotiations led to the end of the siege when German security forces bungled the agreement, thereby leading to the execution of hostages at a Munich air base (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022). Overall, the ability to use negotiation as the medium of engagement between the terrorists and security forces was a successful strategy employed by the terrorists to advance their interests.
Relationship between Black September and the Media
The Black September terrorist group and the media shared a manipulative relationship. The terror cell managed to use national television stations set up to cover events at the Olympic Games to draw attention to their political grievances (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Therefore, as cameras focused on the ongoing games, others were glued to the apartment where the hostage situation unfolded.
The Black September group was successful in manipulating the media to focus on its agenda by staging a siege. This action meant that their terrorist rampage could last for an unknown time. Consequently, the media were forced to discuss the event for prolonged periods because its outcome was unknown (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022). The terror group likewise used negotiation to forestall the actions of security officers and, in some instances, disorganize them.
The media equally played the role of highlighting the history of the terrorists, the background of their actions, and the role of the Israel-Palestine conflict in the crisis, and its known figures, including Yasser Arafat, who was the Palestinian leader at the time (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Such issues were discussed on the global stage at an event that was designed to celebrate sports. It is estimated that about 900 million people worldwide watched the hostage crisis unfold in real time (Duckworth, 2022). This action meant that the media’s attention drifted from the games to the terror event. Therefore, news outlets gave the terrorists a lot of attention, which they needed to advance their cause.
The manipulative relationship between the terrorists and the media further unfolded when the latter was forced to air live images of the terror event, a part of its civic duty to keep viewers informed about happenings at the Olympic Games. This environment led to the production of live broadcasts, such as ABC Wide World of Sports, which significantly contributed to the spread of terrorist media messages (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Broadly, journalists helped to reinforce the terrorists’ messages by drawing global attention to events that happened in one apartment and sensationalizing the outcomes. For example, the phrase “Munich massacre” was coined by the media to highlight events that happened during the siege (Duckworth, 2022). This explicit messaging style overshadowed the games’ theme to the point that few could remember the winning teams or countries.
The role played by the media in highlighting the plight of the Black September terrorist group highlights the risk of manipulation by terror groups to promote their agendas on the global stage. It equally underscores the potential for message distortion, which could happen if terrorist elements infiltrate media circles (Solomon, 2021). Based on events in 1972, it could be argued that the criminal group successfully diverted media attention from the games to its political interests. The mixed effects of the media on the 1972 terror massacre underscore the need to re-examine the ethics of media reporting because over-sensationalized reporting may aid in the promotion of terrorism causes as opposed to those of the “greater good.”
Use of the Olympic Games to Air Grievances
The Olympic Games are among the most hyped and watched events on the global stage. The terrorists used the 1972 Munich Olympic Games to draw global attention to their political grievances with Israel (Duckworth, 2022). They managed to do so effectively by creating a hostage situation in the games, which could not be ignored.
The exposure received by terrorists in the Olympic Games led to the suspension of the event for a couple of hours after the first attack was reported(Haddad, 2020). This reaction gave the terror group unmitigated coverage around the world. It made people question who they were, their agenda, grievances, and possible solutions to their plight (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022). The level of global attention received from the terrorists was unmatched. Therefore, the relationship between the media and the terrorist group was mixed to the extent that it drew attention to their plight while sensationalizing their terror rampage at the same time.
The Black September paramilitary group successfully managed to manipulate the media to its advantage. For example, they used the media to gauge law enforcement officers’ reactions and plans for managing the siege. Similarly, they manipulated the media to securitize the actions and responses of security agents during the crisis by virtue of staging their hostage situation when cameras were rolling (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Black September likewise manipulated the media to expose the ineptness of Western security agents in protecting the lives of their citizens because the siege ended when all hostages were killed (Duckworth, 2022). This outcome was thoroughly scrutinized in the media, with accountability sought for the lives of the dead Israeli hostages (Duckworth, 2022). Overall, Black September manipulated the media to its advantage, thereby achieving its objectives.
Impact of Social Media on Terror Events
The 1972 terrorist event happened at a time when social media use was unknown. The dependence on smartphones for communication, as it is known today, would have significantly increased the profile of the 1972 terrorist event (Ganor & Koblentz-Stenzler, 2022). Given that the attack was aired on national and international media, many people around the world were aware of its occurrence (Tamir & Galily, 2022).
However, the number of people who would have been attentive to the event would have been higher if social media had been used as a communication channel. An increase in outreach would have aided the attainment of one of Black September’s primary objectives: drawing global attention to their plight (Tamir & Galily, 2022). Therefore, the widespread use of social media and its ubiquitous nature would have increased global attention to the terror event, thereby drawing more attention to the plight of the terror group.
Social media use would have further contributed to achieving Black September’s objectives by increasing political support and exposure. This effect could have occurred because, unlike traditional media sources, social media is unregulated (Kruglova, 2022). Therefore, the organizers would have received political support from sections of the global population in the same manner as the current global divide between people who support Israel and Palestine in the 2023 war is witnessed. This outcome would have divided international response to the terror event, thereby complicating processes that would have led to the development of a solution (Haddad, 2020. Based on these insights, social media would have contributed to the terror group’s success and further enhanced its ability to achieve its objectives.
In terms of strategic communication, social media use would have supported the plight of the assailants during the 1972 Summer Olympic Games. Virtual platforms could have been used to spread propaganda about Israel and Palestine, who were the two main antagonists in the event. Similarly, information dissemination would have occurred faster in the social media age than in 1972, possibly attracting more sympathizers from the Arab world (Abdulmajid, 2021). Naturally, German security forces would receive similar support from pro-Westerners who could have backed the annihilation of terror cells at all costs. Therefore, social media use would have significantly boosted Black September’s communication effectiveness during the siege.
Summary
The findings of this investigation demonstrate that the Black September terror group succeeded in turning the 1972 Summer Olympics from a sport to a political event. The media was instrumental in facilitating this transition by addressing the plight of the terrorists and informing the world of their history. Equally, journalists scrutinized the actions of security forces, thereby leading to restraint in their response to the attacks. Given that these events were aired in real time, it could be inferred that the media was manipulated to support the objectives of the adversarial group.
References
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