Al-Qaeda rap

An article from CNN explains that al-shabaab, a Somali-based wing of Al Qaeda is using slick production values and rap to entice members to join.

This is a good thing. This is a very good thing. This means the standard message delivery systems aren't working; that people aren't buying into the messages as they were. Once you're forced to resort to this strategy, you know that the product or idea doesn't 'sell itself', but rather needs big budget things to convince people. That's a good sign of an ideological shift.

Plus, look at the medium. Rap as a media force is a byproduct of the decadent west. On one hand, Al Qaeda is using the narrative strategies of the west with the intent of attacking it. In using the narrative strategies of the west, they undermine the efficacy of their message (that we must attack the west).

I'm not worried by this turn of events. The more Jihad becomes a hard sell, the better we do.