Islam in the News
There is an order on page 2. The two posts are connected to each other. Fill the first page only with the first post and the second page only with the second. Each page.
For this week’s class discussion, we’re going to do something a little different. First, I want you to find a news article from anytime over the past five years that involves Islam–but here’s the tricky part–you cannot post the same article as someone else–this won’t work if everyone posts the same three stories/articles–so make sure no one has posted the same article before you. For your initial post, summarize the article (and provide a link!) and answer the following questions:
Do you detect anything inflammatory regarding the way the piece presents Islam? (make a note of examples)
Does the piece present more fact or opinion? (note some passages which support your conclusions)
Do you detect any statements that may be lies or misleading? One sided? Exaggerations? Generalizations? Half-truths? (make a note of examples)
Does the piece present Islam in a more positive or negative light? (note examples of positive or negative statements)
Does the writer seem well informed about the religion? (how can you tell?)
Can you tell how the writer feels about Islam? (positive or negative or neutral toward it?) (note statements that support your conclusion)
Who wrote the piece: a Muslim or non-Muslim? did the writer quote any Muslims or Muslim sources?
After everyone has posted and you’ve had the opportunity to review posts, I want you to answer the following questions in a post:
What kinds of issues/topics are discussed in these articles?
Do the articles support stereotypes or present an alternative perspective?
How many of the articles are informative (objective)?
How many seem biased?
How many present a positive image of Islam?
How many present a negative image?
How many pieces seem to reflect an informed position?
How many seem uninformed?
Overall, how would you rate media coverage of Islam:
excellent? good? fair? poor? terrible?
“Honest and informed” or “needing improvement”?
Should it be the media’s responsibility to better inform the American public about Islam? why or why not?
How would you suggest the media do a better job informing Americans about Islam?
https://www.pbs.org/video/the-art-of-islam-at-the-met-and-the-louvre-wwehwo/
https://www.pbs.org/video/islamic-scientific-preservation-22854/
