A propaganda video released this week showing a U.K. hostage acting as a news reporter for ISIS is a sign that the extremist group may be shifting its media strategy.
The video, released Monday, features a man who identifies himself as John Cantlie, the British photojournalist who was kidnapped by ISIS militants in northern Syria two years ago.
Throughout the five-and-a-half minute long video, Cantlie claims to be reporting from the Syrian border town of Kobani, where he says ISIS has made gains despite airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition.
In the video, Cantlie appears to be reading from a script as he states that "the battle of Kobani is coming to an end."
The video could not be independently verified by The Associated Press, although some of the scenes appear to be images of Kobani.
With its aerial shots, graphics and animations, the video marks a visual departure from previously released ISIS propaganda – the most infamous of which feature the beheadings of American and British citizens.
Jeffrey Dvorkin, Director of the University of Toronto's journalism program, told CTV News Channel that the Cantlie video may be a sign that ISIS is adopting a new recruitment strategy.
"The old tactics of beheadings really horrified a lot of people, and there may be a sense that the violence that ISIS is proclaiming may not be the best recruiting tactic," he said. "So they may be switching to another way to attract people.
"It's hard to imagine a 'kinder, gentler' ISIS, but that seems to be what they're trying to do."
ISIS uses social media to spread its messages and attract recruits from around the world. There have been several reported cases of individuals from Canada, the U.S., and Western Europe travelling to Syria and Iraq to fight alongside ISIS militants.
In Canada last week, two soldiers were killed in separate, targeted attacks by suspects who had either attempted or expressed interest in traveling to the region.
Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, 58, died on Oct. 20 after he was struck by a vehicle in a St-Jean-sur-Richelieu shopping mall parking lot. Two days later, Cpl. Nathan Cirillo was shot and killed while standing guard at the National War Memorial in Ottawa.
Dvorkin said that it looks as though the new ISIS video is an attempt by the group to "broaden their appeal" and recruit different groups of people.
"It's clear from the events in Canada over the past week and a half, that they have had some success in appealing to fairly disturbed people," he said. "The question is, 'Are they attracting others as well?'"
ISIS backlash
Meanwhile, in the wake of the attacks in Ottawa and Quebec, there have been several online attempts to combat ISIS' messages of hate.
Last week, Montreal teenager Ali Chebli's Facebook post denouncing the extremist group went viral. In the post, Chebli disassociates himself from ISIS and says it is his mission to "combat hate speech and the actions of the jihadists."
His Facebook page, called "Not in My Name," has prompted other Canadian Muslims to share similar messages and photos.
And in Ontario, a university student secretly staged a social experiment to see how Canadians would react to overt racism against a Muslim person.
In the video, which was shot in Hamilton, Ont. following the Ottawa shootings, a man dressed in a traditional Islamic gown is confronted by a "passerby" who tells him he shouldn't be taking the bus. Both men in the video are acting for the purposes of the experiment.
The video captures many other bystanders stepping in to defend the man wearing the gown. Several bystanders also denounce the irate "passerby," accusing him of racism and discrimination.
The video ends with a tribue to Cpl. Cirillo and a call for peace.
"It's time that we all live together in peace," it says.
