| Abstract: |
It has often been pointed out in the literature that a symbiotic relationship
exists between terrorist groups and the media. As yet, however, no formal
model has been built based on this issue and only very little empirical
research has been done in this field. The present contribution builds a simple
game theoretic model, focussing on the social interactions between terrorists
and the media. The model has features of a common-interest-game and results in
multiple equilibria. After a discussion of the policy implications of the
model, an empirical analysis is performed. Using newspaper coverage, terror
incidents and terror fatalities data, it is shown that media attention and
terrorism do mutually Granger cause each other, as predicted by the model.
Moreover, it is explained why terror attacks tend to be “bloodier” in
developing countries than in Europe and the United States. |