Terrorism has been a key issue in US domestic and foreign policy, as well as the country’s national discourse, since 2001. As the War on Terror continues 17 year later, what have we learned about Americans’ attitudes towards and relationship to terrorism?

In this episode of Big World, Professor Young outlines what he thinks are the biggest misconceptions that Americans have about terrorism and why only certain people or groups are labelled “terrorists” (1:18). He talks about Americans who have joined or attempted to join ISIS (3:40), as well as what drives some Americans to join anti-ISIS militias like the Kurdush YPG (6:17). Young explains what he thinks motivates terrorists (hint: it’s not religion) and why today’s terrorism isn’t so different from that of biblical times (9:55). Taking a look at Americans who aren’t on the frontlines, Young describes his research into how depictions of torture on television can impact whether Americans support the use of torture as a counterterrorism measure (17:10). Finally, Young discusses whether he thinks that we think about terrorism too much (21:41).

What would Young do to address terrorism and responses to terrorism around the world? Hear his top five policy suggestions in our “Take Five” segment (11:51).