The video Three Things About Islam: Islamophobia online or a religious dialogue?

Authors

• Ruth Tsuria University of Copenhagen

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30674/scripta.67442

Keywords:

Islam, Islamophobia, Prejudices, Racism, Pluralism, Religious, Religions -- Relations, Dialogue (Theology), Information technology, Internet, Digital media, Media and religion, Social media, Virtual reality, Electronic discussion groups

Abstract

Some scholars view the internet as a place of democracy, where free speech leads to sincere dialogue. Others see it as a place which, instead of endorsing dialogue, actually promotes the offline social order and creates even more animosity between different groups. This paper explores the option of online dialogue in the media of YouTube. It is done so by addressing the rather heated issue of Islamophobia, through the case study of a YouTube video titled Three Things About Islam.The ideology behind the video seems to support the notion of Islam as a threat and its presentation of Islam is closed-minded and tends to generalize. In this case the participatory culture of the media in which the video was presented, YouTube, created a dialogue between anti-Islamists and supporters of Islam. This dialogue, like many dialogues, might not change the opinions of either side, but the mere fact that the online sphere embraces and promotes religious dialogue is an important phenomenon.