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Islam on the Web: Religion in the Digital Age- Mustapha Ajbaili |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 4:13 PM
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Ajbaili: Islamonline.net is trying to improve the coverage of Islam. He suggests improved coverage of issues between Christianity and Islam. Islamonline.net is not a political party. It aims to provoke debate. It is a virtual ground for Muslims around the world. The site wants to invite many opinions, but people [namely the liberal] don't want to be affiliated with the name "Islamonline." It's a challenge, but Ajbaili says it's one they're facing on a daily basis. Wants to promote the liberty and human rights through Islamonline.
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Islam on the Web: Religion in the Digital Age- Khaled Hamza |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 3:47 PM
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Amberin Zaman joins Mustapha Ajbail and Khaled Hamza in a discussion about Religion in the Digital Age.
Hamza: He says he wants to talk about the differences in points of view of different religions. When does one separate religion from life and vice versa? The Muslim Brotherhood does not discriminate against Jews, but does not like the Jewish occupation. Ikhanweb started in 205 as a platform oriented to the West and we have a cultural mission to provide unerstanding to our readers about the Muslim Brotherhood. He says the Brotherhood tries to be objective in anything they do. Fighting for social rights is more important to the Brotherhood versus religious discourse. Shari'ah will not exist until pure freedom exists. The Brotherhood opens the door to criticism. They utilize Facebook and YouTube.
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God and Country: Panel Discussion |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 3:22 PM
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2/3 of Americans, says David Briggs, don't want pastors endorsing one candidate over another. The development of the megachurch is an example of a demographic shift. It reaches people from all sorts of backgrounds, affluence, etc. They're not coming for political reasons. They have also been able to reach the Asian community in Cambodia, Thailand, etc.
Ari explains that a megachurch is a church that has music, social services, children programs, teen programs, daycare, etc. There are even smaller churches within the bigger church. Evangelicals are those who have had a personal conversion experience. People who are "born again." They tend to take the Bible literally. They are on the ultra-convservative side.
Question from Yemen: the non-religious seem to be coming back to religion. He thinks Obama has a good dialogue with religious leaders. Does this mean the U.S. is becoming more religious?
Briggs: He thinks ...
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Matthew Streib: God and Country |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 3:12 PM
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There is much of the younger generation that are not inherently religious. There is almost a push against individuality. There is a need for community. So how do they find a faith? It's based on their socio-political beliefs. Mainstream Protestant churches are dwindling. Twenty percent of youth say they have no religious ties. Conservative churches encourage youth to go to universities and to go abroad on community service missions.
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David Briggs: The role of religion in the U.S. presidential election |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 3:04 PM
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The role of religion in the U.S. presidential election. For those who are unfamiliar with American politics, it may be difficult to realize how important this election was. There were so many different religions and backgrounds. The media did fairly not cover the religiosity of the candidates. They, instead, focused on the religious controversial figures. The media brought Muslims into a poor light. The media focused on Islam in the U.S., instead of educating the U.S. about Islam. "The more reporting we do on Islam, the less understanding we reach." In a June poll, 12% of the U.S. thought Obama was a Muslim, and in December, 12% of the U.S. thought he was a Muslim.
David says we should not be so naiive to believe that minds can be changed automatically. This will take time. Uncommon religions threaten U.S. citizens who are unfamiliar with them. Knowledge of these minority groups is key.
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God and Country: The Role of Religion in the United States: Ari Goldman |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 2:49 PM
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Ari Goldman comments 4/10 Americans consider themselves religious. There is an ignorance, though. This is, in part, due to the U.S.'s inability to teach religion in public schools. People are generally not attached to their faiths. There is a correlation between bad economic times and church. When times are bad, people cling to church, whereas when things are going well, people do not go to church.
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Small Group 4 Recap- Covering Religion: Where to Draw the Line |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 1:46 PM
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Matthew Streib, spokesperson, says many people disagreed on the topic. Cites Joyce Barnathan as saying she was offended by the Danish cartoons. He disagreed, saying that this artist had the right to express his thoughts in this way. Can insulting images be presented in an intelligent manner? Yasmin Ghahremani said that one has the right to show these kinds of cartoons, but do they have to do so? Matthew says it's a big mountain to climb to make up for the inadaquacies of public knowledge. Is this the media's repsponsibility? Should Western Muslims have to stomach Western freedoms? Streib was upset over the coverage of Hurricane Katrina when Jerry Falwell and other preachers blamed the hurricane on gays and the ACLU. He said the coverage of these comments was poor. Should disclaimers be placed in front of difficult criticisms of religion? What about putting religion into journalism schools? Would that help? The topic of the DVD "Obsession" comes about. US newspapers were given copies of this ...
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Small Group 3 - Recap: Religion As A Beat |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 1:32 PM
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Group's agreement was that religion should indeed be a beat. Patrick is the group's spokesperson and he talks about their findings. He said they came to this agreement because religion coverage is difficult and intricate and requires expertise. Religion is an important part of people's lives and should be given more attention than its given already. Some religion stories are badly written when they're not written by religion writers. He cites examples from the Jeremiah Wright controversy. Having religion as a beat compartmentalizes it. Reporters do not have to be religious themselves. Newsrooms should be diverse and representative of their audiences. They can provide a different perspective and provide more understanding. They can, however, also be criticized as sometimes being traitors to their faith. Worldwide, not many countries have religion reporters, aside from the US but even US religion reporters are in decline. There's a lack of interest in religion. Saying something wrong about religion could get yo ...
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Small Group 2 Recap - Covering Religious Minorities |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 1:13 PM
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Kelly McEvers talks about their findings. Define 'religious minority.' Ari Goldman felt an obligation as an NY Times religion reporter to explain faiths that are unfamiliar to his readers. David Briggs said we do a bad job covering religion because we often look to the same person to explain things to us. McEvers says minority groups often WANT to be covered. In Iran, Jews and Christian are recognized minorities. But reporting on the Ba'hai religion is taboo. In Saudi: minorities want to be covered because it is a taboo subject in that country. However, it's dangerous for the journalist and the subject. In China: there is much coverage of minority, in the state-owned press. The Chinese youth are aware of the different religious minorities. Shadid: Is there a danger of paying too much attention to religious minorities? McEvers responds "yes." Especially between covering Shi'a and Sunni Muslims. Tibet gets coverage due to sympathy in many other countries in the world. Matthew comments on Scien ...
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Small Group 1 Recap- Covering Your Own Religion |
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Faith In Media Live Blog!
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By mmathew on
12/16/2008 12:45 PM
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Chris Quinn says his small group was almost split down the middle and no agreement was reached. Saudi Arabia and Yemen are quite strict, as Asma commented she could be persecuted for her writings. Khaled from Egypt says that there is a problem when it comes to Christan dialogue. There was a priest's wife who converted to Islam and there were violent protests. From both sides, there are things that have to remain unsaid because the reaction is unforseen and can become violent. We try to attack issues from a social angle, not a religious angle. Natasha says that when it comes to religion in Egypt, it's more than just a social issue. One can covert from Christianity to Islam but not the other way around. Khaled responds: Conversion is very controversial and the Muslim Brotherhood can not persecute someone who has converted. The popular culture just like to cause problems. Abdul from Yemen: We have laws that address criticism of religion. Tidiane from Senegal: We don't know where to draw the red line. It is very ...
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