Wright, Lori

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University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire Scholars' RepositoryMedia Relations Administrative Offices8-1-2006Why Did The United States Launch The War OnTerror?Lori WrightFollow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/newsThis News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Administrative Offices at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Media Relations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For moreinformation, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.Recommended CitationWright, Lori, "Why Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?" (2006). UNH Today. 1235.https://scholars.unh.edu/news/12359/18/17, 12)40 PMWhy Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?Page 1 of 2http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2006/august/lw_060803terror.cfm@type=n.html Why Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?New Study Reveals Lack Of ''War Narrative'' Led To Different Interpretations By OfficialsContact:  Lori Wright 603-862-0574UNH Media RelationsAugust 1, 2006DURHAM, N.H. -- When the Bush administration launched its “war on terror” immediatelyfollowing the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, it did so without a “war narrative” – a cohesive andconsistent story firmly developed in the minds of the public that prepared them politically andpsychologically for the conflict, according to a new study co-authored by a University of NewHampshire professor.“War Narratives: Framing Our Understanding of the War on Terror” is co-authored by MelvinDubnick, professor of public administration at UNH. It appears in the July/August 2006 issueof Public Administration Review. The study also is co-authored by Kathe Callahan, assistantprofessor of public administration, and Dorothy Olshfski, associate professor of publicadministration, both at Rutgers University-Newark.“In past U.S. wars, a central narrative was a critical element in developing support anddirecting the war effort. This has not been the case with the present ‘war on terror.’ TheUnited States declared the war on terror with no established or emergent ‘state-of-warnarrative,’ ” according to the researchers.Relying on four major narratives found in past American wars, the researchers interviewedthree groups of public officials whose work was affected directly or indirectly by the Sept. 11attacks. Using Bush administration statements about the war on terror widely reported in themedia, the study aimed to determine which, if any, of the four narratives informed thesefederal, state and local officials regarding their roles in the war on terror. Those interviewedrepresented mid- to upper-level managers from the Port Authority of New York and NewJersey; the Newark District Office of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) inNewark, New Jersey; and the township of Montclair, New Jersey.Instead of finding one clear narrative identified by the three groups of administrators, theresearchers found the officials clustered into two groups, one concerned about the protectionof civil liberties and the other identifying with a need to be vigilant and do what is necessaryto prevent future acts of terrorism and reduce the threat of war.“What has been absent in the case of the declared war on terror is an established or emergentnarrative, generated from the political center with the intent of signaling a coherent responseduring a time of war. Although we identified four narratives emerging from top political figuresin the Bush administration, none of these narratives captured the hearts and minds of thepublic officials in this study,” according to the researchers.“Rather, those who participated in our study crafted narratives based on their own values and9/18/17, 12)40 PMWhy Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?Page 2 of 2http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2006/august/lw_060803terror.cfm@type=n.htmlexperiences. They chose statements about war that seemed to reflect their own interpretationof the role of government in society and the appropriate governmental reaction to a specificexternal threat. Thus, their narratives had a particularly conservative or liberal bent. Theconservative narrative targeted vigilance and maintaining security, whereas the liberalnarrative focused on civil liberties and the temporary nature of the disruption,” theresearchers found.The lack of a narrative for the war on terror is unique in American history. Although Americansassociate past wars with a specific event such as the Sept. 11 attacks — the bombardment ofFort Sumter, the sinking of the battleship USS Maine, the attack on Pearl Harbor — in eachcase the road to these wars was well paved materially, politically, and psychologically over anextended period of time preceding those events, according to the researchers.For example, the fall of Fort Sumter in the U.S. Civil War followed events that had unfoldedover several months after Lincoln’s election and after many years of heated national debate.The public had been clamoring for war with Spain for several years when the USS Maine sankin Havana Harbor in February 1898 – and even then, two months passed before Congressdeclared war. And although the attack on Pearl Harbor was a military surprise, it took placeamid debate over plans for mobilization and ongoing preparations for war that had beenbuilding for at least two years.“The war on terror that was triggered by the events of Sept. 11 had no such gestation period.The state of war was declared by President George W. Bush and others without hesitation, butit was also done without any troops or plans in place to confront this particular enemy. Just asimportant, it occurred in a context of public indifference to or ignorance of the threat posed byterrorists,” according to the researchers.Intellectual communities had been discussing possible “blowbacks” and a coming “clash ofcivilizations,” and warnings were issued in a series of federal reports, but little attention wasgiven before Sept. 11 to establish a scenario for a war on terror. “Terrorist threats remainedstories of law enforcement, criminal investigations, and the prosecution of bombers and theirco-conspirators,” the researchers said.EDITORS AND REPORTERS: Dubnick can be reached at 603-862-4083 (office), 617-803-6020 (cell) or m.dubnick@unh.edu. Dubnick's report can be downloaded athttp://www.unh.edu/news/docs/Dubnick_warnarrative.pdf.

Why Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?

University of New Hampshire

University of New Hampshire
University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository
Media Relations Administrative Offices
8-1-2006
Why Did The United States Launch The War On
Terror?
Lori Wright
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/news
This News Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Administrative Offices at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has
been accepted for inclusion in Media Relations by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more
information, please contact nicole.hentz@unh.edu.
Recommended Citation
Wright, Lori, "Why Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?" (2006). UNH Today. 1235.
https://scholars.unh.edu/news/1235
9/18/17, 12)40 PMWhy Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?
Page 1 of 2http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2006/august/lw_060803terror.cfm@type=n.html
 
Why Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?
New Study Reveals Lack Of ''War Narrative'' Led To Different Interpretations By Officials
Contact:  Lori Wright 
603-862-0574
UNH Media Relations
August 1, 2006
DURHAM, N.H. -- When the Bush administration launched its “war on terror” immediately
following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, it did so without a “war narrative” – a cohesive and
consistent story firmly developed in the minds of the public that prepared them politically and
psychologically for the conflict, according to a new study co-authored by a University of New
Hampshire professor.
“War Narratives: Framing Our Understanding of the War on Terror” is co-authored by Melvin
Dubnick, professor of public administration at UNH. It appears in the July/August 2006 issue
of Public Administration Review. The study also is co-authored by Kathe Callahan, assistant
professor of public administration, and Dorothy Olshfski, associate professor of public
administration, both at Rutgers University-Newark.
“In past U.S. wars, a central narrative was a critical element in developing support and
directing the war effort. This has not been the case with the present ‘war on terror.’ The
United States declared the war on terror with no established or emergent ‘state-of-war
narrative,’ ” according to the researchers.
Relying on four major narratives found in past American wars, the researchers interviewed
three groups of public officials whose work was affected directly or indirectly by the Sept. 11
attacks. Using Bush administration statements about the war on terror widely reported in the
media, the study aimed to determine which, if any, of the four narratives informed these
federal, state and local officials regarding their roles in the war on terror. Those interviewed
represented mid- to upper-level managers from the Port Authority of New York and New
Jersey; the Newark District Office of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in
Newark, New Jersey; and the township of Montclair, New Jersey.
Instead of finding one clear narrative identified by the three groups of administrators, the
researchers found the officials clustered into two groups, one concerned about the protection
of civil liberties and the other identifying with a need to be vigilant and do what is necessary
to prevent future acts of terrorism and reduce the threat of war.
“What has been absent in the case of the declared war on terror is an established or emergent
narrative, generated from the political center with the intent of signaling a coherent response
during a time of war. Although we identified four narratives emerging from top political figures
in the Bush administration, none of these narratives captured the hearts and minds of the
public officials in this study,” according to the researchers.
“Rather, those who participated in our study crafted narratives based on their own values and
9/18/17, 12)40 PMWhy Did The United States Launch The War On Terror?
Page 2 of 2http://www.unh.edu/delete/news/cj_nr/2006/august/lw_060803terror.cfm@type=n.html
experiences. They chose statements about war that seemed to reflect their own interpretation
of the role of government in society and the appropriate governmental reaction to a specific
external threat. Thus, their narratives had a particularly conservative or liberal bent. The
conservative narrative targeted vigilance and maintaining security, whereas the liberal
narrative focused on civil liberties and the temporary nature of the disruption,” the
researchers found.
The lack of a narrative for the war on terror is unique in American history. Although Americans
associate past wars with a specific event such as the Sept. 11 attacks — the bombardment of
Fort Sumter, the sinking of the battleship USS Maine, the attack on Pearl Harbor — in each
case the road to these wars was well paved materially, politically, and psychologically over an
extended period of time preceding those events, according to the researchers.
For example, the fall of Fort Sumter in the U.S. Civil War followed events that had unfolded
over several months after Lincoln’s election and after many years of heated national debate.
The public had been clamoring for war with Spain for several years when the USS Maine sank
in Havana Harbor in February 1898 – and even then, two months passed before Congress
declared war. And although the attack on Pearl Harbor was a military surprise, it took place
amid debate over plans for mobilization and ongoing preparations for war that had been
building for at least two years.
“The war on terror that was triggered by the events of Sept. 11 had no such gestation period.
The state of war was declared by President George W. Bush and others without hesitation, but
it was also done without any troops or plans in place to confront this particular enemy. Just as
important, it occurred in a context of public indifference to or ignorance of the threat posed by
terrorists,” according to the researchers.
Intellectual communities had been discussing possible “blowbacks” and a coming “clash of
civilizations,” and warnings were issued in a series of federal reports, but little attention was
given before Sept. 11 to establish a scenario for a war on terror. “Terrorist threats remained
stories of law enforcement, criminal investigations, and the prosecution of bombers and their
co-conspirators,” the researchers said.
EDITORS AND REPORTERS: Dubnick can be reached at 603-862-4083 (office), 617-
803-6020 (cell) or m.dubnick@unh.edu. Dubnick's report can be downloaded at
http://www.unh.edu/news/docs/Dubnick_warnarrative.pdf.


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