Modern tools, old Ideology: How terrorist groups modernize their propaganda strategies

Al-Qaeda is exploiting modern technology to deceive poor and uneducated youth, transforming its propaganda strategy to fit the digital age.

With the expansion of social media and online platforms, the group has shifted away from traditional methods of communication, rebuilding its media apparatus to reach a broader and more vulnerable audience.

In the past, the network released its videos and statements through limited websites, but now platforms such as Telegram, X, and YouTube have become its main tools for spreading ideology and recruiting followers.

A United Nations report released this year confirmed that this transformation is part of al-Qaeda’s effort to compete with the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) for media influence and reshape its image among the next generation of extremists.

Analysts say social media gives al-Qaeda 24-hour access to individuals with limited religious knowledge or education -- those most susceptible to manipulation.

The group spreads its propaganda through various online channels, said Zalmai Anwari, a computer science professor at a private university in Herat.

"Social media and online platforms make it possible to publish multimedia content simultaneously," he said. "Al-Qaeda uses these tools to distribute high-quality videos and images with deceptive content across the world."

This propaganda lures many young people who lack proper religious education, drawing them toward extremism and terrorism, especially in poor and unstable countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, and parts of Africa, Anwari said.

Because the internet allows the creation of countless anonymous accounts, filtering al-Qaeda’s content has become increasingly difficult.

A report by the Center for the Study of Extremism in London and SITE Intelligence Group found that al-Qaeda’s branches in Yemen, Somalia, and North Africa now employ professional editing, emotional soundtracks, and striking visuals to enhance their appeal and attract impressionable viewers.

Distorting Islam through deception

Unlike its earlier propaganda focused on armed jihad, al-Qaeda’s current messaging emphasizes Islamic identity, global injustices against Muslims, and calls for renewed faith.

Analysts say this rhetorical shift aims to soften the group’s image and avoid detection by security agencies.

Ali Ahmad Jahangiri, a political analyst in Kabul, said al-Qaeda manipulates Islamic principles to advance its own interests.

"Al-Qaeda views religion as a tool to achieve its goals. It disguises its extremist and inhumane messages in religious language to deceive emotional and uninformed youth," he said.

He said that the group’s actions are "crimes against humanity" unrelated to Islam, but its exploitation of religion continues to ensnare vulnerable young people in poor countries.

Islam prohibits violence and extremism, yet al-Qaeda promotes both, said Faqir Ahmadi, a religious scholar in Herat.

"Spreading extremist propaganda by al-Qaeda is the greatest injustice to the holy religion of Islam," he said.

"This terrorist organization has distorted Islam’s image, portraying it as a source of violence and murder," Ahmadi said.