[user104658]

(AKA should we avoid reporting terrorism?)

So, the goal of terrorism is to spread fear, panic, and to disrupt the comfort of everyday life. It is not to terrorise the people they are killing, but the others who will hear about it.

With that in mind, does it not seem likely that the effect of en masse front page reporting of terrorist attacks does little more than encourage further attacks? If global terrorist incidents were relegated to a couple of square inches back next to the sports, would this actively decrease the frequency of attacks?

Would a commitment to such even be possible with media culture as it is? Perhaps one of the biggest ironies is that these attacks, supposedly motivated by a hatred of shallow western ways, generate headlines that are used to great effect to sell a tonne of tabloid trash newspapers - one of the very shallowest aspects of our culture? Masses of people buying dailies with body parts strewn over the front page because OMGdramaz.

It just seems such a mess. Terrorism and sensationalism, they go hand in hand. Can it not just stop? Can those with the means not tackle the issue as it needs to be tackled - cold, calm calculation and intelligent strikes and campaigns - instead of having the entire western world flapping and clucking like a bunch of chickens in a henhouse that's been invaded by a fox?

This is a rhetorical question I suppose. I know that won't happen. Flapping and panicking and despair is inevitable and the cycle will continue.

Still, I'm interested to hear others thoughts on this. Do any of you get an overwhelming urge to vomit profusely all over the tabloid stands like I do?