The missive from No. 2 terrorist Ayman al-Zawahiri was posted on an Islamist Web site and called the United States' first African-American president a "house negro" who appeared "to be captive to the same criminal American mentality towards the world and towards the Muslims."

CNN said the message warned that the United States was losing its campaign in Afghanistan and leaned heavily on imagery of Malcolm X, the late African-American Muslim leader.

The Daily Voice, a U.S. Web site that specializes in news for the African-American community, said Malcolm X used the term "house negro" in the 1960s as a derogatory term for a black man who kowtowed to whites.

The Daily Voice analysis concluded: "The difference, of course, is that President-elect Obama would not be a mere house servant in the White House. Instead, he would be the head of the household."

The timing of the al-Qaida message was also noted by U.S. analysts who told ABC News that al-Qaida was silent for two months prior to the elections, which could indicate dissention within the organization over how to address the issue of Obama taking over the U.S. war on terror.