Dasgupta 1

Hanna Dasgupta
Professor Karam Dana
Honors 394
17 February 2016
Islamophobia in the Media and the Public Sphere
Islamophobia was first defined in 1991 by the Runnymede Trust Corporation as
unfounded hostility towards Muslims, and therefore fear or dislike of all or more
Muslims. It is an epidemic that has plagued the countries of the West for centuries,
leading to cycles of reactionary violence and an ever-expanding gulf between the West
and the Muslim world. Historically rooted, the aversion to Islam persists daily due to
fictional and inaccurate portrayals of Muslims in the media, and real integration into
society by means of political, cultural, and societal agendas.
Islamophobia roots back to the early 14th century, when it began to be
considered a threatening opposition to Christianity. In the Medieval ages, Islam
appeared to be a 'powerful' socio-politico-religious force of the medieval times when
other religions were passing through their 'Dark Age.' (Iqbal 88). As the Roman Empire
declined and Western Europe faced cultural and economic deterioration, Islam found
traction in its expansion. Christian-dominated regions were threatened by this force as it
had proved to be a substantial competitor, which led to the Crusades as an effort to oust
the Turks and regain balance in this socio-political power struggle. As these dueling
forces further expanded independently, the opposition between the two religions grew
deeper and is now reflected in Western culture in the form of Islamophobia.

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In response to socio-political conflicts, many governments use a specific political
tool to help unite its peoples: nationalism. One way to do this is to create a common
enemy or a general source of fear and danger so that the citizens of the country are not
only distracted from turmoil within the country, but also connect more with their fellow
citizens and in fact place more trust in their government to protect them from dangers.
Over time, this common enemy has fluctuated from European control in the early
foundation of the United States, to the threat of communist countries, to JapaneseAmericans. As the threat of communism declined, Islamophobia became a replacement
common enemy (Iqbal 89). In essence, the specific source of fear and danger is
replaceable as long as it is effective in activating patriotic and nationalistic sentiments.
By constantly mobilizing its citizens to fight a common target, the U.S. encourages
patriotism and in-group identification. Without patriotism, the government would have
difficulty controlling its citizens and pushing its political agenda. For this reason,
nationalism is an important enough issue for Western governments to encourage
inhumane discrimination to its citizens.
To maintain this competitive nationalistic attitude, the U.S. continues to instill
antagonistic viewpoints daily in news networks and entertainment media. In Reel Bad
Arabs, Jack Shaheen notes that the vilification of the Arab-Muslim (billionaires,
bombers, and belly dancers) has become a fundamental part of American
entertainment media. This is problematic because it causes an increasing sense that
the West seeks a war against Muslims through either constant deprecation [in the
media]or outright conquest, as in Afghanistan and Iraq (Gottschalk 2). The U.S.
demonstrates interest in causing conflict with Muslims through its triggering media

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images and its war efforts in various Muslim-dominated countries. As a result,
reactionary anger from the people being misrepresented and provoked in the media is
only to be expected. In essence, the U.S.s own role in inviting anger and violence
through its triggering stereotyping in its media is not to be minimized.
More worrisome than media portrayals is the problem of Islamophobic attitudes
being espoused by political leaders, public educators, and others who significantly
shape the lives of future generations. In many American schools, this cultural
differentiation is carelessly sanctioned. Mayida Zaal describes an instance in which a
teacher asks her students to write a paragraph using key words AI Qaeda, terrorist,
Islam, Muslim, hijacker, and Islamist (Zaal 555). As an effect, the teacher is guiding her
students thoughts so that they return a specific essay that is in accordance with the
teachers (or institutions) agenda. This is a propagandistic way of teaching that not only
isolates Muslim students but also fosters bias in students who admire and respect their
teachers.
This harmful effect of powerful and respected figures appropriating intolerance
even extends to adults who are influenced by political leaders or celebrities who publicly
speak in support of Otherization and isolation. Even currently, Donald Trumps run for
presidency is almost entirely based on bigotry and discrimination. The medias
obsessive attention on his racist speeches and personal social media posts suggests
that it is acceptable for people to be intolerant of others as if an inhumane opinion of
a religion or race can be justified despite evidence proving these opinions wrong.
Politicians like Trump play a critically central role in convincing many that a civilizational
clash will be inevitableby establishing the fact of an essential and irreconcilable

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difference between them and us (Gottschalk 3). Trumps effort to expand the gulf
between the Middle East and the West is a strategic way of garnering support for
himself in the image of the American hero who will protect his country against threats.
As the obsession with disparaging images of Middle Eastern people (and
indifference toward accurate representation of them) continues along with public
leaders support of animosity, a common enemy is created in Muslims, and the Middle
East is increasingly differentiated from the West. The only way to resolve this unjust
generalization and racialization of a religion is if Western people take personal initiative
to reject images created by the media and espoused by the government, and educate
themselves on the reality of Islam and the various Middle Eastern cultures.

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Bibliography
Elia, Nada. Islamophobia and the "privileging" of Arab American Women. NWSA
Journal 18.3 (2006): 155161. Web.
Gottschalk, Peter, and Gabriel Greenberg. Islamophobia: Making Muslims the Enemy.
Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2008. Print.
Iqbal, Zafar. Islamophobia or Islamophobias: Towards Developing A Process Model.
Islamic Studies 49.1 (2010): 81101. Web.
Jhally, Sut, Jeremy Earp, and Jack G. Shaheen. Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood
Vilifies a People. Northampton, MA: Media Education Foundation, 2006.

Zaal, Mayida. Islamophobia in Classrooms, Media, and Politics. Journal of Adolescent

& Adult Literacy 55.6 (2012): 555558. Web.