Advertisement

CHART: Oslo Terrorist’s Manifesto Cited Many Islamophobic Bloggers And Pundits

Right-wing pundits and bloggers were quick to leap to judgement that the Norwegian terror attacks were the work of al-Qaeda or an Islamic terrorist. But the news that the attacker had blond hair and blue eyes and was inspired by right-wing “counterjihad” bloggers suddenly turned the tables on many of the bloggers and supposed “terrorism experts.”

Anders Breivik’s manifesto contains numerous in-text and footnoted citations to prominent Islamophobic bloggers, supposed experts on Islamic terrorism and think tanks claiming to be on the frontlines of battling Islam’s attacks on democracies.

Individuals cited in Breivik’s manifesto include: Center for Security Policy’s President Frank Gaffney; “counterjihad” bloggers Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer; Investigative Project on Terrorism’s Director Steven Emerson; Middle East Forum President Daniel Pipes; and controversial historian Bat Ye’or.

Organization’s cited by Breivik include: the Foundation For Defense Of Democracies (FDD) and the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).

Advertisement

Also receiving mention were the Clarion Fund’s Islamophobic documentary “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West” and right-wing Pajamas Media. Here’s a chart highlighting the number of references:

While a citation in the manifesto is far from an endorsement of violence by those Breivik referenced, it is increasingly clear that the Islamophobic right-wing in the U.S. influenced his views.