Whats The Times practice about using the word “terrorist”?
This question often comes from individuals who believe that the word should have been applied to someone but wasn’t; suicide bombings and other attacks are often reported in grim detail, so the enormity of the event is made clear to the reader. The words “terrorism,” or “terrorist attack,” for example, are used, although editors prefer to use a precise description of what happened in an attack, such as “a suicide bombing,” “a kidnaping,” or “a rocket attack.” A terrorist act is an act of violence that specifically targets civilians to achieve a political goal. Many groups around the world sponsor or carry out terrorist acts. Many of them also carry out actions that do not fit the definition — attacks on military forces, for example, or they engage in peaceful activities at the same time. Because of that, editors generally try to avoid labeling a group or a person as a terrorist and, instead, prefer to describe the action.
