Three of the most influential individuals in the evolution of English-language jihadist propaganda are the Americans Anwar al-Awlaki, Samir Khan, and Ahmad Abousamra. Al-Awlaki and Khan are perhaps best known for founding and editing Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula’s Inspire magazine while Abousamra edited the Islamic State’s Dabiq and Rumiyah magazines. However, their legacies, especially those of al-Awlaki and Khan, extend well-beyond the propaganda sphere, with their influences evident in some of the most significant strategic, operational, and ideological trends in the dramatic transformation of Salafi-jihadism in the West this century. While there is considerable scholarship devoted to analyzing English-language jihadist propaganda, this study partly seeks to contribute to analyses of the propagandists themselves as a means to develop a more nuanced picture of violent extremist threats. This study applies Ligon et al’s CIP (Charismatic, Ideological, and Pragmatic) leadership framework to analyze the different legacies and impacts of the three Americans arguing that al-Awlaki emerges as the quintessential charismatic leader, Khan as an ideological leader, and Abousamra as a pragmatic leader. These distinctions in leadership styles are reflective of the different personal attributes, backgrounds, and organizational contexts within which the individuals operated. Moreover, these differences in leadership characteristics shaped their respective impacts and legacies in ways that have important implications for the fields of research and practice.
The Founding Fathers of American Jihad: The Impacts and Legacies of Anwar al-Awlaki, Samir Khan, and Ahmad Abousamra
June 30, 2021