Strategic Communication Against Extremism

Indonesian media outlets have learned to avoid being easily exploited by radical groups, because if it has happened, its mean a mistake in the media's initial treatment of radicals.

In early 2000s, Indonesian media gave a lot of attention to radicals, most notably cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, leader of Al-Qaeda-linked terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). Media turned him into a superstar. The radicals and the extremists were exploiting us. However, the media plays a big role in strategic communication against violent extremism.

Being admitted or not, that nowadays, the media was undertaking a new strategy to counter the radicals. Every media only broadcast news when they break loose, not when they are spreading propaganda.

Furthermore, media should play a key role in "filtering" the voice of radicals. Furthermore, media does not give space for radicals, because the radicals are now media savvy and they have a propagandis, trained provocateurs and an observer. Social media poses challenges in counter extremism efforts.
 
Actually, many radicals used social media to spread "their stories, their propaganda."  The internet is seen by some as an open marketplace for ideologies. A number of media pundits has suggested that to fight those voices, we have to fight them on the internet.

According to Courtney Radsch, the advocacy director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said counter-narrative efforts by media outlets faced an uphill task with the focus on the Islamic State (IS) group. "ISIS media strategy is very sophisticated," she said.

"All the literature reviews show that government-funded counter-narratives are ineffective," argued Radsch, particularly on government-sponsored or controlled media. Furthermore, these failures "discredit the idea that the media is independent."
 
Radsch mentioned a significant problem in the government's counter-narrative efforts, which is the belief that "extremist views are not allowed to be expressed."

She argued that online censorship only pushed radicals to private and encrypted chatrooms, thereby not allowing journalists and governments to see what is going on. According to Radsch, a more sensible approach would be to focus not "on content, but on the perception of content".

Strategic Communication
    
In the era of digital and democratization nowadays, a communication through an internet and a number of a communication tools have needed to spread "our ideas, our propaganda and our experience" to another people.
 
In this context, the role of a strategic communication is decisive to make our mission or our intention can understand by another people's, so that they are supporting whatever we want and wherever we do.

A Strategic communication is a communication which could make another people alert and vigilance on our message. Basically, a strategic communication is a style of communication which is explain about a strategic things or a strategic content.

Recently, both government and a radicals group have used and an implemented a strategic communication. The differences amongs them, the government use a strategic communication to combat or to minimalize hate-speech, extreem radicalism and terrorism influence spread.

Meanwhile, a radical groups have used a strategic communication through internet, social media, internal media and a mainstream media to spread their influence and to recruit a new members also to downgrade government reputation.

According to Harold D Lasswell, mass communication pundits said, the best way to explain communication activities is answering the question "Who says what, which channel to whom what effect".

Reaching a positive results, the implementation of a strategic communication is depend on a communication strategy. The meaning of a communication strategy by an Indonesia communication pundits, Effendy (2003:301) said basically a communication strategy is a planning and management to reach one purpose.

Meanwhile, Quinn (1992) said, in order a communication has effectively done in the program, it must include several things such as an objective, an innitiatives maintaining, concentration, flexibility, leadership, honest and secure.

Whilst, R Wayne Pace, Brent D Peterson and M Dallas Barnett at Techniques for Effective Communication said, the goals of a communication central including threen main goals such as to secure understanding; to establish acceptance and to motivate action.

Generally, a communication strategy can be done through 10 steps such as problem or program analysist; situation analysist; feasibility analysist; communication goals; communication strategy; media development planning; media testing and production; media using; information system and media monitoring; problem analysist and evaluation.

Against Extremism
    
Regarding all those theory and pundits opinion above, strategic communication effectively to counter extremism depend on the quality of speaker or propagandist and media which using to counter terror propaganda or violent extremism; a valid background or information about a strategic communication objects and what effect which we want to reach through this activities.
    
Talking about counter-narrative measures against extremism and terrorism must be done with all circles partisipation. Counter-narrative can be made based on religious historical against extremism and terrorism; an indigineous and local wisdoms and values to tackle extremism and terrorism; the experience of peace keeper; etc.
    
However, the successful of efforts to counter and minimalize extremism and terrorism depend on the quality of counter-narrative among each other.

Whoever has an effective and a good strategy of communication could be taken maximum efforts rather than the less ones. In the related this, whoever has a briliant ideas and a huge access to mass media and another communications tools is more easier to win and to get the heart and mind of people than their enemies.
    
*) The writer earned his master degree at the University of Indonesia (UI). Previously, he was earned his bachelor degree on political sciences at the University of Jember (Unej).