1st Edition
Muslims, Minorities, and the Media Discourses on Islam in the West
Inspired by overtly negative coverage by the Western mainstream press of Muslims in particular, and minorities in general, this book asks: Why are negative narratives and depictions of Muslims and other minorities so hard to change?
News reports about Islam and Muslims commonly relate stories that discuss terrorism, violence or other unwelcome or irrational behaviour, or the lack of integration and compatibility of Muslims and Islam with Western values and society. Yet there is little research done on how studies on media reports about minorities seemingly fail to improve the situation. Combining empirical research with a structural analysis of the media industry, this volume presents evidence for the maligned representation of minorities by media corporations, analysing why negative narratives persist and outlining how these can be effectively transformed.
It is an outstanding resource for students and scholars of media, religion, culture, sociology, and Islamic studies, and is also of benefit for journalists, media representatives, and activists looking to effect change for minority representation in the media industry specifically or in society at large.
Introduction
Part I: Media as a discursive system and how we see minorities
1. The workings of a Media outlet
2. Media and communication mechanisms
3. Media as a discursive institution of influence
4. Minority discourses and the Media
Part II: Symbolic representations of minorities and how we interact with those images
5. Symbolic Representations of Minorities
6. The consumption of media reports
7. Hermeneutics and the negotiation of meaning in media reports
Part III: Avenues for Change
8. Changing psychological processes
9. Considerations for Organisational Change in the Media sphere
10. Discursive Change
Conclusion.
Bibliography
Index
Biography
Laurens De Rooij is currently based at Toulouse School of Management. His research examines how people interact with media in relation to religion and culture and how that affects their interpretation and conceptualization of a variety of contemporary issues.
