Western nations must develop their own 鈥渕edia machine鈥� to counter the slick recruiting videos that Islamic State militants and other extremists produce to lure disenchanted young people into their ranks, one expert says.
A being unveiled Tuesday in Calgary, called Extreme Dialogue, aims to do just that, with videos, teaching tools and other resources to show young people the true impact of violent extremism.
鈥淲e know that extremists are prolific online, they are waging an active war for the hearts and minds of our young people,鈥� Rachel Briggs, a lead developer on the campaign, told CTV鈥檚 Canada AM Tuesday morning from Calgary.
鈥淓xtreme Dialogue is an attempt to help equip young people with the skills that they need so that when they come across that kind of propaganda online they can see it for what it really is and make proper, sensible, informed decisions about how to read it and how to discard it.鈥�
One of the videos includes an interview with Christianne Boudreau, whose son, Damian Clairmont, died while fighting with ISIS militants in Syria last year.
Boudreau addresses her son for the entire nine-minute video, tearfully telling him about the devastating impact his decision to join jihadists in Syria had on her and their family.
鈥淚 became consumed with searching for you. And this is how I did it, in your room, watching every single YouTube video just to see your face, your eyes, that you were still alive,鈥� Boudreau says as she sits at her son鈥檚 computer.
鈥淎nd I never did see you. How was I supposed to do anything when all I wanted to do was look for you and find you alive?鈥�
She describes a terrifying telephone call from her son in which he had to run from a low-flying plane while they spoke. On Jan. 14, 2014, a reporter called her to say her son鈥檚 death was being reported on Twitter.
鈥淲e鈥檙e just left in the dark,鈥� Boudreau says. 鈥淵ou wanted to help people. Why couldn鈥檛 we find another way?鈥�
The new campaign was developed by the U.K.-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue. Funding for the $10-million campaign was provided by the federal government鈥檚 Kanishka Project, launched in 2011 to combat extremism.
Islamic State runs a slick social media campaign to broadcast its work, including via Twitter and YouTube.
鈥淲e need our own media machine,鈥� Briggs said, one that doesn鈥檛 tell young people what not to do, but rather provides information so that they can make their own decisions.
The videos are raw, unscripted and 鈥渋mperfect,鈥� according to Briggs, to show the true impact that violent extremism has had on people.
鈥淭he best way to get to the head is through the heart, extremists know that all too well,鈥� Briggs said, so the videos have been designed to 鈥渆motionally engaging.鈥�
The campaign also includes resources for teachers who may be too intimidated to start a conversation about extremism in the classroom. Questions to kick-start the dialogue, as well as suggested classroom activities and exercises, are all part of the campaign, as is a call to action to students.
鈥淚dealistic young people are curious and they are upset about the things they see in Syria, they are upset about community conflict within their own local areas,鈥� Briggs said. 鈥淲hat we want to do is harness that idealism and say, 鈥榙o something positive instead.鈥欌��
The campaign follows the release of a similar initiative by the French government last month. A two-minute video shows a jihadist recruiter approaching a young man on Facebook to join extremists in Syria.
The video includes graphic images of what the campaign鈥檚 creators say is the reality of life among militants overseas: headless corpses and dead civilians.
鈥淭hey tell you: 鈥楽acrifice yourself at our side and you鈥檒l defend a noble cause.' In reality, you will discover hell on earth and will die alone, far from home,鈥� the video says.
A website launched with the campaign includes interviews with experts, tips for 鈥渄ecrypting jihadist propaganda鈥� and a hotline.
Meanwhile, Briggs said the Canadian program being launched Tuesday is merely the first phase of the campaign. Developers are still seeking more interview subjects for their videos.
鈥淭his is just the start of the road,鈥� she said.
