Browsing by Subject "Islamophobia"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
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    Hijacking Islam: An Analysis of Positive Representations of Islam and Muslims in the U.S.
    (2022-11) Mirzaei, Saeide
    In this dissertation, I analyze positive representations of Islam and Muslims in pre- and post-9/11 legal, political, and public discourses. I focus on the prisoners’ civil rights cases of the late 20th century, the 9/11 Commission Report, and the presidential discourse since Jimmy Carter as representative data. I argue that the attempt to distinguish Islam from “terrorism”—or other “violent ideologies”—has led to the formulation of discursive constructs that frame Islam as a corruptible religion that can be easily perverted, hijacked, and weaponized. This conceptualization of Islam legitimizes policing Muslim-presenting people and justifies dictating the true meaning of Islam to Muslims. I conclude that positive representations of Islam and Muslims undermine our efforts to counter Islamophobia because they create an illusion of acceptance for “good Islam” and obscure the underlying Islamophobic ideology that operates below the threshold of our notice.
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    “Somali-Americans’ Media Use and Trust in News Sources”
    (2019-06) Kelley, Debra
    This dissertation is the culmination of a 10-year ethnographic study of immigrant news consumption, providing an in-depth view of Somali-American’s criticisms of mainstream news representation of their community, and examining the role of trust in media consumption. The results from this study inform traditional news media about different worldviews and what is needed to engage immigrant audiences. Data from this dissertation also sheds light on what the immigrants who participated in this study do to create their own media forums and build community. This document includes analyses from interviews, social media posts, public events, a pilot survey and newspaper coverage of Somalis.