Stance Agency and Affectedness: A Critical Linguistic Analysis - Research Paper Example

Aims of the Project This work on the project under the topic chosen is aimed at investigation into the stance and agency and affectedness in the two chosen news articles, one from CNN and the other from Al-Jazeera news. The news is a peculiar sphere of the language application which involves both the ability to represent and introduce certain pieces of information and to present it in such a way that the author’s attitude, evaluation and subjectivity would be absent making the reader think on what is written and, consequently, read on his or her own. This means that the written texts must correspond to certain linguistic rules. To investigate whether this is right the present investigation will analyze the two mentioned news articles to explore if there are any significant differences in the use of the agency in the texts and how they are used by the authors in delivering their stance or world views on the fields of the texts. My investigation is based on the register analysis from the perspective of the field and tenor of the texts. It will also consider the ways the stance, the agency and the affectedness are represented in the texts under critical linguistic analysis. This means that, in particular, it will be revealed who the actors, or the doers of the actions, are, what ideological, value and world view the authors convey, and who the affected part is in the consequence of the action taking by its doer. I think that, the importance of this investigation aside, my analysis can be beneficial in terms of detecting the author’s role in conveying the informative messages by means of the texts which are addressed to mass audience (because they are delivered to it through the mass media) and will describe which features these texts contain from this point of view. The Rationale and Main Conceptual Themes for the Investigation The main conceptual themes for the investigation involves the use of ‘field’ and ‘tenor’, that is, systemic functional grammar, and relevant concepts of linguistic theory that associate to the terms. They fit the Halliday functional grammar analysis in terms of consideration of the processes, participants and circumstances, and the register components such as the tenor and the field. (O’Donnell, M., 2012, 2). In modern life the news and the mass media through which it is conveyed to the audience makes a considerable part of the social and societal activity. This is explained by several reasons some of which may be not obvious but not less significant due to this phenomenon. The first reason comes out from the destination of the news – informing the audience, for example, the population in case of nationwide information agencies and newspapers which are read by the biggest part of the citizens, about the current phenomena, events and trends in all the spheres of human activity through the whole world. In this regard it is necessary to mention that there are certain ways of information delivery – online, that is, the news is accessed on the internet, printed information which includes, obviously, newspapers, magazines or any other physical information carriers on which the news is printed, and TV or radio broadcasting by means of the news channels or programmes on air. The second reason comes out from the news covering an extremely wide audience in relation to quantitative aspect – development of technologies has enforced easier and more overwhelming delivery of the information to the listener/viewer/reader, and this gives a possibility wither to form a certain public opinion on various events or phenomena or to manipulate it in order to obtain definite results and benefits from such action. (Storrs, C., 2010). The importance of the information which is delivered to its audience in form of written texts in this regard is that this has become a single source of information which is more or less trusted by today’s audience. This is conditioned by historical tradition: the written word initially was the only source of the information conveying, and the written text described the actual phenomena and events that took place in real life. Today this tradition is enforced by moral aspect of the writer’s activity, as he is considered to be responsible for consistency and truthfulness of what is written. If the information does not correspond to reality, the writer tends to lose the reputation and to be referred to as an unethical person from both social and professional perspectives. The necessity to prove the written information by provision of the references and citations from the outside sources also imparts confidence in such a way of the news delivery. The fact that the other mentioned sources of information, the internet or TV or radio broadcasting, often do not include reference material and on certain condition shed the light from only one aspect distracts a significant share of the audience in favour of the written sources. The real state of affairs, however, shows that there are some points of concern even in the written form of the news presentation, which are especially seen today. This is, for example, tracing the author’s subjectivity and tendency to evaluative presenting of the informative blocks of the news. The practice shows that this is a product of the activity of the country and to some extent and element of propaganda or counter-propaganda. (Miller, D., 2006). The best example in this regard is the sphere of mass media in the UK. As this country has historically been distant from the continental Europe, both physically (location on the group of islands that are not connected with the continent) and politically, which has been done through permanent defending its interests, the tendencies for independency and authenticity are still strong in today’s British society and political elite, and the tabloids and newspapers abound in critical materials about the European Union the content of which often coincides with the author’s opinion. (Gardner, D., 2003). In this regard, the stance and standing elements of tenor are peculiar and different from the continental ones, being engaged in favour of the country’s independence. The articles chosen for the present analysis consider the tenor of the texts which coincides with the general Western one regarding the terrorists’ attacks – it is negative which is proved by use of such expressive words as “deadly” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). To investigate into the similar elements of the two articles chosen I think it is beneficial to conduct the analysis from the point of view of systemic functional grammar, and in this regard definition of the texts’ processes, participants and circumstances will be the best instrument. The Methods Used to Collect the Evidences As it comes out from the aims and the rationale of my project work, the sources of information chosen for my investigation are the two mentioned online news articles – the first comes from CNN and is titled “Attack Hit Tunisia where It Hurt” by Peter Bergen and David Sterman. It has been accessed online from the CNN website under the following link: http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/19/opinions/bergen-tunisia-terror-tourists/. The article contains 653 words and includes photographic material for better explanation and depicting of the event highlighted. The second article comes from Al-Jazeera news agency and is titled “ISIL Claims Responsibility for Tunisia Museum Attack”. This article was written by Al Jazeera and wire services. The word count of the article mentioned makes 635 words. There is only one photo on the top of the article on the website compared to the first article which has informative photos. The second article has been reached under the link http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/3/19/several-arrests-made-in-tunisia-museum-attack.html#. These articles have the same nature as they both come from the news agencies and are designed for informing the readers about the events around the world, in particular, the terrorist attack in Tunisia. I have also used a work by Mick O’Donnell from Universidad Autonoma de Madrid titled “Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics for Discourse Analysis” to consider the theoretical material for grounding the outcomes of my investigation. This work has also been accessed online under the following link http://web.uam.es/departamentos/filoyletras/filoinglesa/Courses/LFC11/LFC-2011-Week1.pdf. The author reveals the purpose of his work: “This course provides a basic introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) particularly in regards to those aspects most applicable to analyzing discourse.” (O’Donnell, M., 2012, 1). The total word count of the article makes 2317 words. The choice of the sources of the reference materials has been made with the consideration of the setting, in relation to the articles (CNN provides an opinion of the Western society about the problem described, and the setting is, obviously, Western, while Al Jazeera is considered to be the only credible Arab source of information in the Middle East and Arab countries region, and the setting is Arabic) and the extent of the theoretical revealing of the matter and issues of systemic functional linguistics. The news articles have been chosen from credible sources which are big regional and world news agencies which usually provide truthful information about different places and events of the world. The work by Mick O’Donnell provides exhaustive theoretical information about the method of critical linguistic analysis chosen for the present investigation and is a universal resource on this topic. These three major sources, together with the auxiliary ones mentioned above which come from the sources that are not closely related to the linguistic sphere, but contribute to the overall understanding of the written texts, allow for better revealing of the research topic and obtaining the most complete data and results of the findings. Findings of the Research The register analysis of the two articles mentioned gave the following results. The tenor of the article by CNN was analysed by means of the categories which would be revealed in the course of the analysis. The category of equality/inequality had the value of inequality in this article because it did not provide any response of the reader and the positioning of the writer was similarly to an expert in his field. The article used declarative sentences all the length through. The category of social distance was bigger in the CNN article because the writer was similarly not in contact with the doers of the action in the location where the described event had taken place. The article had been written for a wide category of the audience and due to this had features of formality: the pronouns of the first and the second person were not used in the text, and human participant was referred to using his full title (Prime Minister Habib Essid). (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). There was a minimal use of colloquial language (the word ‘the Westerners’) which had similarly been done as an attempt to reduce the mentioned social distance. (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The category of the writer expertise or persona was revealed by the writers’ self-positioning as the expert in the written material. The writer mentioned a similar case in his article which related to the event described (the Pakistan terrorists attack on Mumbai in 2008) and provided the details of that case. (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The CNN writer used evaluative devices of the language: the words ‘flourishing’, ‘deadly’, ‘iconic’ in relation to the Indian Taj, ‘hunted’ in relation to the criminals were definitely the indicators of the author’s negative evaluation of the actions of the characters of the article. (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The category of deontic and epistemic modality was revealed as follows: there were statements that are categorical (“The deadly attack…is the latest instance…of … armed…gunmen…” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)), and the text also provided examples of epistemic modality (“This seems a likely outcome of the attack…” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)). The category of the attitude, which may be neutral, positive or negative, was negative in the CNN article: the mentioned words ‘flourishing’, ‘deadly’ conveyed the author’s negative attitude towards the doers of the action, which was enforced by reference to them as ‘jihadist terrorists’. (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The writer stressed on the participants in order to make an emphasis on the agency (‘terrorists... killed 23 people’, where ‘terrorists’ were the doers of the action, and the action was ‘killed’ (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The field of the CNN article was analysed as follows. The text dealt with the subject matter of the terrorists attacks which had recently become a point of significant concern. The vocabulary of the CNN text showed a certain degree of expertise in the field (the word ‘fedayeen’ evidenced of the author’s knowledge (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)). The events were characterized by division into the processes, participants and circumstances. The types of the processes were action and saying. The participants were all human beings. The circumstances were situations which were observed in real life. The agency and affectedness were also observed in the CNN article: in regards to agency, there was an example of the actors (“…10 gunmen from Pakistan (actor) went on a rampage (physical process)” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)), there were by-phrases with the goals (“…an armed assault (goal) carried out (process) by gunmen (by-phrase actor)…, a tactic (goal) that has been widely adopted (process) by jihadist terrorists (by-phrase actor)…” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)), and ergative verbs (“terrorist attack…hit Tunisia” with the ergative verb ‘hit’ (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015)). The affection was represented by the participants which were affected by the doers of the action (“attack (actor)… targeting…tourism industry (affected)” (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015). The stance of the article was revealed through the author’s position which was condemning the ‘deadly’ terrorist attacks (Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015), argument which stated that the effect of these actions was negative, and the thesis which was that the terrorists adopted armed assaults tactics which should be counteracted – ‘…gunmen…went on a rampage…’. (CNN, 2015; O’Donnell, M., 2012, 1-7). The tenor of Al Jazeera article was analysed as well. The article was also unequal in terms of equality/inequality, due to the writer’s similarity to an expert. The declarative statements dominated throughout the entire article. The text featured formal writing traits which was due to no use of the pronouns of first and second persons, and the humans were referred to with the indication of the full title (“Prime Minister Habib Essid” (Al Jazeera, 2015)). The text did not include use of colloquial language. The writer expertise or persona was that there was evidence of the writer’s being expert. There was no evaluation from the writer’s perspective, though it was present in the claim of one of the participants (“…blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and vice in Muslim Tunisia…” which negatively evaluated the state of affairs in a Muslim country (Al Jazeera, 2015)). There were evidences of deontic and epistemic modality: there were categorical statements (“Tunisian troops arrested two of Khachnaoui’s family members” (Al Jazeera, 2015)) and deontic ones (“Tunisia was working with other countries to learn more about the attackers” (Al Jazeera, 2015)). The article showed the author’s neutral attitude towards the text written, because there was no negative or positive evaluation. The field of the Al Jazeera article was revealed by the following analysis. The text also tackled the topic of the recent terrorist attacks. The vocabulary of the text demonstrated the author’s experience and expertise in this sphere (there are citations of the ISIL group claims). The events were also divided into the processes, participants and circumstances. The processes were classified according to two types: saying and action. All the participants were humans. Real life events made the circumstances of the text. The excerpt represented the agency and affectedness. The agency was provided by the actors (“The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) (actor) issued a statement…” (Al Jazeera, 2015)). The article contained in this regard also the by-phrases (“…said the statement (goal) which was also announced (process) by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group (by-phrase actor)…” (Al Jazeera, 2015)). The ergative verbs were present as well (“statement…was…announced” = statement announced (Al Jazeera, 2015)). The doers of the actions affected the targets of these actions, which was the affectedness of the article (“…shooting attack (actor) that left 23 people dead (affected)” (Al Jazeera, 2015). The author’s neutral position formulated the stance of the article. The author neither condemned nor praised the doers of the actions, the thesis of the article was that it was necessary to study the activity of the terrorists further. (Al Jazeera, 2015; O’Donnell, M., 2012, 1-7). Personal Evaluation of the Project The investigation of the present work shows that the news is usually conveyed through the mass media with observing the norms and rules and with the proper use of such linguistic categories vital for the author’s expertise and credibility as the stance, affectedness and agency, and that the field and tenor are the instruments of analysis which are helpful in terms of checking the information correspondence. As it was mentioned above, there is an opinion that the news help to influence the public meaning. Taking into consideration the analysis outcome of the CNN a Article, it is similar that the setting influences the author’s position – the Western society has always been critical about terrorist attacks around the world, and the news imparts the same opinion on its audience. The authors use special terms, such as ‘fedayeen’ to create an image of being an expert in order to make his writing truthful and to eliminate social distance. (CNN, 2015). The second article represents a neutral view on the same event and this may be explained by the setting as well – the Arabic society has always been used to such phenomena due to its cultural and religious peculiarities; in the same time, the author reasonably assumes that the terrorists’ actions need a careful further study. (Al Jazeera, 2015). In this regard, the text does not follow the target of influencing the public opinion, this is an informative text which also provides evidence of the author’s competence in his writing. There are citations of the terrorist group which mean that the writer has managed to study the auxiliary material. I think that the findings of the present investigation may be useful for the readers of the news articles in terms of their credibility and expertise and consideration of their purpose. As it is usually not considered which linguistic techniques and devices are used, the reader tends to believe what is written, which, as the practise shows, is not always the case, and even a brief consideration of such things may reveal the mentioned issues of truthfulness and determination at influencing one’s opinion on certain topic. References Al Jazeera, 2015. ISIL Claims Responsibility for Tunisia Museum Attack. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015. Attack Hit Tunisia where It Hurt. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. Gardner, D., 2003. Why are the British so anti-EU? Or Are We just Indifferent? [Online] (updated 2003) Available at: [Accessed 21 May 2015]. Miller, D., 2006. The Propaganda We Pass Off as News Around the World. [Online] (updated 2006) Available at: [Accessed 21 May 2015]. O’Donnell, M., 2012. Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics for Discourse Analysis. [Online] (updated 2012) Available at: [Accessed 21 May 2015]. Storrs, C., 2010. How Effective Are Misinformation Campaigns to Manipulate Public Opinion? [Online] (updated 2010) Available at: [Accessed 21 May 2015]. APPENDIX 1 CRYTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE TEXTS Register Analysis Linguistic Evidence TENOR ‘CNN’ ‘Al Jazeera’ Equality/Inequality: no response of the reader and the positioning of the writer is similarly to an expert in his field Declarative statements are used all the length through. Declarative statements are used all the length through. Social Distance: ‘CNN’ shows bigger social distance than ‘Al Jazeera’. Formality the writer is similarly not in contact with the doers of the action in the location where the described event has taken place. The article has been written for a wide category of the audience and due to this has features of formality: the pronouns of the first and the second person are not used in the text, and human participant is referred to using his full title (Prime Minister Habib Essid). Formality The text features formal writing traits which is due to no use of the pronouns of first and second persons, and the humans are referred to with the indication of the full title (“Prime Minister Habib Essid”. Colloquial language There is a minimal use of colloquial language (the word ‘the Westerners’) which has similarly been done as an attempt to reduce the mentioned social distance. Colloquial language The text does not include use of colloquial language. Writer persona/expertise: both newspaper articles’ writers position themselves from the perspective of experts The category of the writer expertise or persona is revealed by the writers’ self-positioning as the expert in the written material. The writer mentions a similar case in his article which relates to the event described (the Pakistan terrorists attack on Mumbai in 2008) and provides the details of that case. The writer expertise or persona is that there is evidence of the writer’s being expert. Evaluative devices of the language: the words ‘flourishing’, ‘deadly’, ‘iconic’ in relation to the Indian Taj, ‘hunted’ in relation to the criminals are definitely the indicators of the author’s negative evaluation of the actions of the characters of the article. There is no evaluation from the writer’s perspective, though it is present in the claim of one of the participants (“…blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and vice in Muslim Tunisia…” which negatively evaluates the state of affairs in a Muslim country. Deontic and epistemic modality The category of deontic and epistemic modality is revealed as follows: there are statements that are categorical (“The deadly attack…is the latest instance…of … armed…gunmen…”), and the text also provides examples of epistemic modality (“This seems a likely outcome of the attack…”) Deontic and epistemic modality There are evidences of deontic and epistemic modality: there are categorical statements (“Tunisian troops arrested two of Khachnaoui’s family members” and deontic ones (“Tunisia was working with other countries to learn more about the attackers”. Attitude (+/-/neutral) The category is negative in the CNN article: the mentioned words ‘flourishing’, ‘deadly’ convey the author’s negative attitude towards the doers of the action, which is enforced by reference to them as ‘jihadist terrorists’. Attitude (+/-/neutral) The article shows the author’s neutral attitude towards the text written, because there is no negative or positive evaluation. Stance The stance of the article is revealed through the author’s position which is condemning the ‘deadly’ terrorist attacks, argument which states that the effect of these actions is negative, and the thesis which is that the terrorists adopt armed assaults tactics which must be counteracted – ‘…gunmen…went on a rampage…’. The author’s neutral position formulates the stance pf the article. The author neither condemns nor praises the doers of the actions, the thesis of the article is that it is necessary to study the activity of the terrorists further. FIELD ‘CNN’ ‘Al Jazeera’ Subject matter: Both articles are about terrorist attack. The text deals with the subject matter of the terrorists attacks which have recently become a point of significant concern. The text also tackles the topic of the recent terrorist attacks. Expertise Vocabulary The vocabulary of the CNN text shows a certain degree of expertise in the field (the word ‘fedayeen’ evidences of the author’s knowledge. Vocabulary The vocabulary of the text demonstrates the author’s experience and expertise in this sphere (there are citations of the ISIL group claims). Events The events are characterized by division into the processes, participants and circumstances. Events The events are also divided into the processes, participants and circumstances. Types of processes The types of the processes are action and saying. Participants The participants are all human beings. Circumstances The circumstances are situations which are observed in real life. Agency and Affectedness The agency and affectedness are also observed in the CNN article: in regards to agency, there is an example of the actors (“…10 gunmen from Pakistan (actor) went on a rampage (physical process)”, there are by-phrases with the goals (“…an armed assault (goal) carried out (process) by gunmen (by-phrase actor)…, a tactic (goal) that has been widely adopted (process) by jihadist terrorists (by-phrase actor)…”, and ergative verbs (“terrorist attack…hit Tunisia” with the ergative verb ‘hit’. The affection is represented by the participants which are affected by the doers of the action (“attack (actor)… targeting…tourism industry (affected)”. Types of processes The processes are classified according to two types: saying and action. Participants All the participants are humans. Circumstances Real life events make the circumstances of the text. Agency and Affectedness The excerpt represents the agency and affectedness. The agency is provided by the actors (“The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) (actor) issued a statement…”. The article contains in this regard also the by-phrases (“…said the statement (goal) which was also announced (process) by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group (by-phrase actor)…”. The ergative verbs are present as well (“statement…was…announced” = statement announced. The doers of the actions affect the targets of these actions, which is the affectedness of the article (“…shooting attack (actor) that left 23 people dead (affected)” Appendix 2: The Texts for Analysis Article 1 Title: Attack hit Tunisia where it hurt Author: Peter Bergan and David Sterman, 2015 Author Affiliation: CNN Material Type: Online News Article Publication Year: March 19th 2015 1 (CNN) Wednesday's terrorist attack, which killed 23 people, hit Tunisia where it 2 hurt by targeting its flourishing tourism industry. 3 The deadly attack on the prominent Bardo Museum near Tunisia's parliament in 4 the country's capital, Tunis, is the latest instance of an armed assault carried out 5 by gunmen willing to fight to the death, a tactic that has been widely adopted by 6 jihadist terrorists in recent years, including in North Africa. 7 Such attacks mimic the 2008 Mumbai assaults in which 10 gunmen from Pakistan 8 went on a rampage in the massive Indian port city. They took hostages and 9 killed more than 160 people over a three-day period, in an attack that drew 10 sustained global TV coverage. The gunmen attacked iconic Mumbai targets such 11 as the Taj hotel, which is frequented by Westerners. 12 The Mumbai gunmen embarked on their attack knowing that it was a "fedayeen" 13 mission -- meaning "those who sacrifice themselves" -- and that they would 14 probably fight to the death. Only one gunman survived. 15 In this week's Tunisia attack, the gunmen took hostages, two gunmen died in the 16 assault, and three survived and are being hunted by the Tunisian government. 17 Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid said the attackers at the Bardo Museum 18 had specifically targeted tourists to hurt the country's economy. 19 This seems a likely outcome of the attack, as tourism is vital to Tunisia's 20 economy, providing 15% of GDP. Source: Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015. Attack Hit Tunisia where It Hurt. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. N/B: The Source of all this information is obtained from an article written by Peter Bergan and David Sterman, for CNN, in March 2015. The link to this information is on the bibliographic section. Article 2 Title: ISIL claims responsibility for Tunisia museum attack: Author: Aljazeera and Wire Services Author Affiliation: Aljazeera America Material Type: Online News Article Date of Publication: March 19th 2015 1 The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) issued a statement Thursday 2 claiming responsibility for the shooting attack that left 23 people dead, most 3 of them tourists, at Tunisia's national museum a day earlier. 4 The statement described Wednesday's attack on the Bardo Museum in 5 Tunis, the capital, as a "blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and 6 vice in Muslim Tunisia" and appeared on a forum that carries messages 7 from the armed group. 8 It said that there were two attackers and that they were not killed until they 9 ran out of ammunition. 10 The statement also promised more attacks. 11 "Wait for the glad tidings of what will harm you, impure ones, for what you 12 have seen today is the first drop of the rain," said the statement, which was 13 also announced by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group, 14 an organization that monitors armed groups. 15 Tunisian officials said Thursday that nine people have been arrested in 16 connection with the attack. Four of them are accused of having direct links 17 to the Bardo attack, and the other five are accused of having links to those 18 who carried it out, Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reported. 19 Earlier, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid had said that one of the 20 gunmen was known to intelligence services but that no formal links to a 21 particular group have been established. In an interview with 22 France's RTL radio, he said Tunisia was working with other countries to 23 learn more about the attackers, identified as Yassine Laabidi and Hatem 24 Khachnaoui. Both were killed in the ensuing raid by security services. 25 Tunisian troops arrested two of Khachnaoui's family members, Reuters 26 reported Thursday, citing a security source. It was unclear if the arrests 27 were in addition to or among the nine arrests announced by Tunisian 28 authorities earlier in the day. Source: Al Jazeera, 2015. ISIL claims responsibility for Tunisia museum attack. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. N/B: The source of the information used emanates from the website of Aljazeera America, and it was retrieved on 13th of May 2015. APPENDIX 3: THE MATERIAL CLAUSES IN THE TEXTS AND ETHICAL CONCERNS Title: Attack hit Tunisia where it hurt Author: Peter Bergan and David Sterman, 2015 Author Affiliation: CNN Material Type: Online News Article Publication Year: March 2015 1 (CNN) Wednesday's terrorist attack, which killed 23 people, hit Tunisia where it 2 hurt by targeting its flourishing tourism industry. 3 The deadly attack on the prominent Bardo Museum near Tunisia's parliament in 4 the country's capital, Tunis, is the latest instance of an armed assault carried out 5 by gunmen willing to fight to the death, a tactic that has been widely adopted by 6 jihadist terrorists in recent years, including in North Africa. 7 Such attacks mimic the 2008 Mumbai assaults in which 10 gunmen from Pakistan 8 went on a rampage in the massive Indian port city. They took hostages and 9 killed more than 160 people over a three-day period, in an attack that drew 10 sustained global TV coverage. The gunmen attacked iconic Mumbai targets such 11as the Taj hotel, which is frequented by Westerners. 12 The Mumbai gunmen embarked on their attack knowing that it was a "fedayeen" 13 mission -- meaning "those who sacrifice themselves" -- and that they would 14 probably fight to the death. Only one gunman survived. 15 In this week's Tunisia attack, the gunmen took hostages, two gunmen died in the 16 assault, and three survived and are being hunted by the Tunisian government. 17 Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid said the attackers at the Bardo Museum 18 had specifically targeted tourists to hurt the country's economy. 19 This seems a likely outcome of the attack, as tourism is vital to Tunisia's 20 economy, providing 15% of GDP. Source: Bergen, P., Sterman, D., 2015. Attack Hit Tunisia where It Hurt. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. N/B: The Source of the information used is obtained from an article written by Peter Bergan and David Sterman, for CNN, in March 2015. The link to this information is on the bibliographic section. Title: ISIL claims responsibility for Tunisia museum attack: Author: Aljazeera and Wire Services Author Affiliation: Aljazeera America Material Type: Online News Article Date of Publication: March 19th 2015 1 The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) issued a statement Thursday 2 claiming responsibility for the shooting attack that left 23 people dead, most 3 of them tourists, at Tunisia’s national museum a day earlier. 4 The statement described Wednesday's attack on the Bardo Museum in 5 Tunis, the capital, as a "blessed invasion of one of the dens of infidels and 6 vice in Muslim Tunisia" and appeared on a forum that carries messages 7 from the armed group. 8 It said that there were two attackers and that they were not killed until they 9 ran out of ammunition. 10 The statement also promised more attacks. 11 "Wait for the glad tidings of what will harm you, impure ones, for what you 12 have seen today is the first drop of the rain," said the statement, which was 13 also announced by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group, 14 anorganization that monitors armed groups. 15 Tunisian officials said Thursday that nine people have been arrested in 16 connection with the attack. Four of them are accused of having direct links 17 to the Bardo attack, and the other five are accused of having links to those 18 who carried it out, Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland reported.  19 Earlier, Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid had said that one of the 20 gunmen was known to intelligence services but that no formal links to a 21 particular group have been established. In an interview with 22 France's RTL radio, he said Tunisia was working with other countries to 23 learn more about the attackers, identified as Yassine Laabidi and Hatem 24 Khachnaoui. Both were killed in the ensuing raid by security services. 25 Tunisian troops arrested two of Khachnaoui’s family members, Reuters 26 reported Thursday, citing a security source. It was unclear if the arrests 27 were in addition to or among the nine arrests announced by Tunisian 28 authorities earlier in the day.  Source: Al Jazeera, 2015. ISIL claims responsibility for Tunisia museum attack. [Online] (updated 2015) Available at: [Accessed 13 May 2015]. N/B: The source of the information used emanates from the website of Aljazeera America, and it was retrieved on 13th of May 2015. Ethical Concerns of the Research The ethical concerns of the present research are in the sphere of the news conveying neutrality. It has become very popular to engage mass media for obtaining certain benefits from such actions, but neutral highlighting of the events is the original idea of the news delivery, and this will be concerned in the study. Read More