Just two short years ago, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was decapitated by Islamic fundamentalists while on assignment in Pakistan. Pearl's murder was videotaped and released for all to see by a website that juxtaposes pornography and violent images of death and destruction.
The FBI quickly became involved and asked the website's operators to, in effect, remove the video from the site. Yet, citing First Amendment rights, the website continued to allow its users to download the video.
A few months later, Judea Pearl, Daniel Pearl's mother, wrote an editorial in the New York Times in which she discussed the video's release. Rather than focus on her own individual pain and anguish, Ms. Pearl selflessly focused on the larger issue at hand: effectively combating terrorism.
According to Mrs. Pearl, "Displaying this murder undermines efforts to fight terrorism and anti-Semitism … If we assist the revival of this ancient practice [decapitation] and allow it to infect our media and invade our websites, we will be inviting more abductions and more murders … We will be helping the enemy destroy our role models and weaken our ability to rally people for the struggle."
In Iraq, terrorists have used video cameras to showcase the brutal slayings of innocent civilian contractors from across the globe. Just last Friday, Kenneth Bigley, a British civilian contractor, had his gruesome death recorded. And a week before that, two American contractors had their deaths recorded in front of video cameras. All of these slayings can be viewed online.
Undoubtedly, the Iraqi terrorists see the video camera as their ultimate propaganda tool. The grainy, grizzly and terrifying images of bloodshed elicit feelings of fear and helplessness for each viewer. With the creation of more and more videos, these feelings will only intensify, and the terrorist's demands will perhaps became worthy of acquiescence.
However, we can never acquiesce to any terrorist's demands. Whatever your feelings regarding Iraq, the men who mercilessly destroy innocent human life are terrorists. Terrorists purposely kill the innocent; soldiers kill those armed and in uniform.
While many will point to the display of these videos as a First Amendment right, these videos should be removed from the Web. Many will argue that in a time of war, we need to fully understand our vile enemies and begin to understand the totally incomprehensible.
However, the airing of these videos only bolsters the terrorists' causes. The terrorists take the time to videotape their executions because they know people will watch in utter dismay. They know that people will keep coming back. They understand the shock value associated with the beheadings.
The videotapes also drastically reduce the lives of the victims to a five-to-ten minute harrowing ordeal. Seen begging, yelling and screaming, the victims are stripped of their dignity and positioned in the most helpless of states. Their accomplishments, dreams and abilities are never acknowledged. Their death, perhaps one of the most private of moments for a family, becomes publicized for all to see. They are remembered for their deaths and not their lives.
Daniel Pearl was a hero of mine. His pieces ranged from the revitalization of rock-and-roll in Iran to the war in Kosovo. Always rich and entertaining, his stories beckoned others to become members of the trade and experience the wonders of the world. Daniel Pearl loved life, diversity and a good story. The fullness of his life should be remembered, not his death.
Josh Moskowitz ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in political science and journalism.
