Gadahn's Oscar Ambitions Thwarted

Back in the day, when Adam Gadahn was just getting started as guru to Al Qaeda's media operations, he released a couple of fairly slick videos designed to appeal to Western audiences by mimicking Western documentaries -- up to and including the presence of a musical soundtrack.

It is therefore interesting to note that the latest release from As-Sahab (which Gadahn basically runs at this point) opens with a short disclaimer. "ATTENTION: We do not permit musical accompaniment with our productions." One second later, a nasheed (religious song) fired up, but I guess that doesn't count.

I'm guessing this is due to input from one of Gadahn's Al Qaeda overseers. It's interesting that these guys can rationalize away visits to strip clubs but they can't handle a light orchestral score.

On the one hand, from a Western perspective, we should applaud such inconsistencies, which tend to shine a light on the hypocrisy of AQ's theological underpinnings. On the other hand, Gadahn's message indicated that AQ is increasingly sensitive to criticism of its Islamic credentials, so this may be the first stage in a rehabilitation campaign.

On the other hand, maybe they're just annoyed about badly executed music.

Labels: Adam-Gadahn, American-Al-Qaeda, American-Jihadists, American-Terrorists, Analysis, Azzam-the-American

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Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink