Terror on trial: New research project on extremism and the media!

Terror on trial: New research project on extremism and the media!

On April 18, 2025, an innovative research project was launched by the universities of Bielefeld, Cologne and Marburg, which deals in detail with judicial practices in German terrorism trials. The focus is on comparative observations of negotiations against defendants from extreme right-wing and jihadist backgrounds. Supported by the German Research Foundation with 1.2 million euros over three years, the project aims to shed light on the connection between ideology, identity, interests and knowledge in terrorism proceedings. The sub-project is led by Dr. Kerstin Eppert and Viktoria Roth at the Institute for Interdisciplinary Conflict and Violence Research (IKG) at Bielefeld University, like aktuell.uni-bielefeld.de reported.

A central concern of this project is the analysis of gender, religious and cultural attributions in court hearings. Previous studies have shown that societal gender ideas have a significant influence on the evaluation of defendants. Nevertheless, compared internationally, forensic research in Germany is still in its infancy. With the aim of gaining new insights into the social dynamics in the courtroom, the project will examine both direct interactions in the courtroom as well as the emergence of legal knowledge and public perception in the media.

Media reporting in focus

The media representation of terrorism is another important aspect of the research project. Scholars such as Wolfgang Frindte, Nicole Haußecker and Jens Jirschitzka have previously dealt intensively with the media construction and individual interpretation of terrorism, particularly before and after the events of September 11, 2001, a turning point in the global perception of terrorism. Reporting is seen as a key factor shaping people's perceptions of terrorist threats bundesstiftung-friedensforschung.de highlights.

In recent years, various quantitative and qualitative analyzes of news reporting have been carried out to examine the influence of the media on the population's individual understanding of terrorism and security behavior. A planned survey of 100 German people will provide further insights into their media usage behavior and understanding of terrorism. These analyzes are part of a broader project aimed at developing scientific sensors and indicators of potential terrorist threats and exploring the social environmental conditions of terror.

New findings and international cooperation

The project “Negotiating Terror: German Courts as Social Places of Negotiation and Knowledge Production on Extreme Right-Wing and Jihadist Terrorism,” with the short title “Judging Terror,” will run from January 2025 to December 2027. Planned results include scientific publications and presentations at specialist conferences. There is also cooperation with the international IN-COURT network to promote comparative research at an international level.

The remarkable variety of approaches and perspectives shows that a differentiated approach to the topics of terrorism and media reporting is urgently needed. The outcome of this project could provide profound insights into how terrorism is perceived and processed in Germany and what role the judiciary plays in this.