Culture
When You Attack a Crowd of People, You Also Get a Crowd of Witnesses
This is more true than ever in the digital age.
A crowd is a vulnerable target in nearly any context. The more people, the more potential casualties of a terror attack, and the bigger the impact on the collective psyche of such an attack on everyone who gathers anywhere for street parties or book fairs or jazz festivals. But the thing about crowds is that for all the ways in which they're susceptible to harm, they're also resilient to its aftermath.
Spectators in a crowd quickly become first responders. Runners in a marathon become the best documentarians of its chaotic conclusion. And the targets of an attack instantly become its best witnesses.