Thesis (M.A. in communication)--Washington State University, August 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 47-50).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Based on the analysis of interviews with young Muslim women in South Australia, and the analysis of two daily newspapers, The Australian and The Advertiser, this thesis looks at themes of religious racism, representation, identity, and resistance to racism. This thesis offers critiques of existing terminology used to describe negativity and hostility based on religious affiliation. It also offers strong arguments for the use of new terminology : religious racism. This thesis argues that the lived experiences of young Muslim women in South Australia are fraught with this racism. It argues that claims of a 'secular' society mask the continuing influence of a Christian heritage and assist in the subordination of religious minorities, particularly Muslims. Following similar research in other contexts, this thesis argues that the news media in Australia ( especially newspapers ) plays a significant role in the ( re ) production of religious racism, primarily through the repeated use of negative representations and stereotypes of Muslims. A number of textual strategies are utilised in this process such as the use of negatively loaded words ( eg 'terrorist' or 'fanatics' ), the types of photographs used, and the kinds of stories deemed newsworthy. Numerous examples of such racism are presented in the discourse analysis of representations of Muslims and Islam in the two newspapers. This thesis also addresses the direct impact of such representations on the participants in the study. Although this thesis presents a number of narratives of religious racism as experienced by the women, it does not present these women as passive victims. It argues that in negotiating, dealing with and challenging such racism, these women exhibit personal agency as well as courage and resourcefulness. This thesis acknowledges both the significant impact of religious racism on the women as well as their resistance to it. This thesis utilises literature from the field of race and whiteness studies to critique concepts of hegemonic national identity that marginalise Muslim communities and individuals. It argues that, although Muslims may not figure in hegemonic national identity, they construct they own sense of national belonging that encompasses their identities as Muslims, as women and as Australians. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Social Sciences, 2006.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

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A standard element of many news stories that mention Islam is the 'expert.' An expert contributes what is presented as objective knowledge about Islam to a news story. Through ostensibly objective statements, an expert plays a significant role in the representation of Islam. / In this thesis I theorize the concept of an 'expert on Islam' in news media and I confirm my theoretical positions through a content analysis of two Canadian newspapers' use of the expert on Islam; these two newspapers are The Globe and Mail and The National Post. / The thesis develops two arguments based on the results of the content analysis: first, the representation of Islam and expertise on Islam in news media has more to do with the preoccupations of Western culture than with Islam itself; second, there are distinct patterns in these representations that can contribute to an understanding of the role of the 'expert' in relations of power.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Erlangen, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

No description available.

This is an inquiry into cultural constructions of "Islamic violence" in dominant Northern discourses. Mainstream Canadian journalism's participation in these discourses is analyzed within the context of its cultural and structural integration into global media networks. Media materials are scrutinized using critical discourse, dramatistic, and ritual analysis methodologies. The thesis follows Hamid Mowlana's suggestion that inquiries into international communication flows should move beyond traditional paradigms of inter-national relations (in which nation-states are the primary objects of study) to consider intra- and transnational participants as well. / Borrowing from Jacques Ellul, this study examines the importance of myth as a fundamental basis of communication. However, unlike Ellul, it also explores alternatives to the operations of dominant communication structures. Edward Said's critique of Orientalism informs the analysis of Northern portrayals of Muslim societies; but the dissertation attempts to avoid overstating the Orientalist discourses' hegemony by proposing a model of competition among dominant, oppositional and alternative discourses on "Islam." / Mainstream media's adherence to dominant technological myths and their general reticence about the structural and direct violence of elite states are examined. Distinct similarities are found between the utopic orientations and technical operations of dominant Northern and Muslim discourses, as well as in Jewish, Christian and Muslim conceptions of holy/just war. The proliferation of contemporary Northern images about "Islam" are traced historically to four primary stereotypes about Muslims. / Examinations of the supposedly objective and secularist media reportage on terrorism show differences in portrayal according to the perpetrators' religions. Analyses of the coverage of wars involving peoples of Muslim backgrounds in the Middle East, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and the former USSR demonstrate the tendency of dominant journalistic scripts to attribute diverse political, economic and territorial conflicts to a monolithic "lslam" The dissertation traces how the global media narrative's transformation of Saddam Hussein from an ally of the West to a demonic despot was aided by according him "Islamic" characteristics. It also looks at the emergence of "Islam" as a post-Cold War Other. Lastly, proposals made by scholars and journalists for enhancing inter-cultural communication between Northern and Muslim societies are considered.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2009. / Title from PDF title page (University of Texas Digital Repository, viewed on July 30, 2009). Vita. Includes bibliographical references.