ORIGINAL ARTICLE Networks of Terror: Theoretical Assumptions and Pragmatic Consequences Cynthia Stohl & Michael Stohl Department of Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106 Very little has been written in scholarly or popular venues on the conceptualization and utilization of the term network to describe terrorist organizing. In this paper, we identify critical disjunctures between the assumptions of contemporary communication network theory and the assumptions and appropriation of network concepts by the cur- rent U.S. Administration in discussions of terrorism networks. We argue that the theo- retical and empirical foundations of contemporary network research provide a more complex and constructive platform from which policy makers may ask better questions and find better solutions. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2885.2007.00289.x How will we fight and win this war? We will direct every resource at our command—every means of diplomacy, every tool of intelligence, every instrument of law enforcement, every financial influence, and every necessary weapon of war—to the disruption and to the defeat of the global terror network. (Bush, 2001) At a White House meeting of senior officials Monday, [former State Department counterterrorism official Larry Johnson] wrote, ‘‘Bush reportedly said he was not in favor of the new term . [GSAVE: a global struggle against violent extremism].’’ In fact, he said, ‘‘No one checked with me.’’ That comment brought an uncomfortable silence to the assembled group of pooh-bahs. The president insisted it was still a war as far as he is concerned. (Kamen, 2005) Despite unwavering support by President Bush for the phrase war on terror, much has been written on why the war metaphor is a counterproductive rhetorical and tactical strategy (e.g., Alam, 2005; Heymann, 2003; Lakoff, 2001; Smith, 2002). Scholars, pundits, and even military leaders have argued that the war metaphor has undermined the ability of the United States to manage the problem of terrorism. In July 2005, for example, General Richard Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Corresponding author: Cynthia Stohl; e-mail: cstohl@comm.ucsb.edu Communication Theory ISSN 1050-3293 Communication Theory 17 (2007) 93–124 ª 2007 International Communication Association 93