Kuwait terrorist attacks : a content analysis study

Abstract EN

This study examines the coverage of tin* Kuwaiti terrorist attacks by the Arab Times anti the Kuwait Times (two Kuwaiti newspapers) in the five weeks following the attacks.

The researchers found that the newspapers highlighted efforts against terrorists and to prepare for the war against terrorism.

This study attempts to determine whether these two highly influential newspapers provided context in their stories to help readers understand why these attacks occurred and the background of terrorism, such as the religious, social, psychological, economical and historical context of terrorist actions.

Results from the content analysis showed that the Kuwait Times and Arab limes newspapers discussed in depth only the Islamic religion factor, which focused on the misuse of Islamic teachings by the extremists groups such as that of Osama Bin Laden.

Overall, these results showed that the two newspapers focused on the terrorist attacks in Kuwait and finding a means to rebuild the Islamic picture or retaliation against the terrorists, such as the international counter-terrorism center, while ignoring the social, economical, and historical factors behind the attacks.