With reference to any group you have studied or you are researching; discuss how their identity has

been mediated.

I have chosen to research Muslims as their identity remains to be associated with extremism and terror. Since Wars began in Afghanistan, Iraq and some other Middle Eastern countries, Muslims have been endlessly mediated. For the past 13 years and present, the media coverage for Islamic countries is mainly in relation to war and violence, mainly due to the conflict in Afghanistan between the West and the Taliban. In the subsequent paragraphs I will discuss the ways in which Muslims are mediated in society. Most terrorist attacks have been committed by Islamic extremists such as Osama Bin Laden and the Al Qaeda, therefore it can be argued that the media re-enforce this as the dominant representation of Muslims as the media over-react this aspect of their behaviour. Outsiders observe and adopt this model behaviour which can lead to the stereotyping of all Muslims as terrorists. Stanley Cohen argues that Moral Panic occurs when a problem is a threat to societal values and interests; in this case Muslims are seen as the threat and problem to society as the media enforce moral panic for the public to anticipate a conspiracy plan by Muslims. One of the ways in which they re-enforce this dominant representation is the wording and titling on print media. For example, an article by Daily Mail on the murder of Lee Rigby emphasises the killing by the murderer Muslim converts ran him down before almost decapitating him with meat cleaver and knives many instantly got a negative impression on Muslims, which was proven as there was a significant increase in Islamaphobic crimes after the incident by hate groups such as the EDL (English Defence League). People interpret differently from each other, so like the word convert may suggest that the religion (Islam) has had an adverse impact on the attackers to behave in this way. Fox News an American media institution has been criticised for having Islamaphobic reports, from people like Bill OReilly who quotes Muslims are terroristsMuslims killed US on 9/11 his views are purely judgemental based on the attackers of the 9/11, many were quick to respond especially Muslims. Interestingly, there is an entropic representation of Muslims in the way they have been mediated. For example, an unusual representation was shown in the film Cloverfield where an alien attack occurs in New York, similarly to the real outbreak in 2001 of the 9/11 which had also occurred in New York. The aliens are represented as the Muslims extremists in the real world who terrorise; this representation of extremists as creatures/aliens is negative as it implies that they are inhuman and isolated. In Cloverfield the concept of the missing head on the statue of liberty ties in with the destruction of the twin towers, which connotes that freedom has been abolished in New York. Therefore it can be argued, that director Matt Reeves re-enforces moral panic especially in America as many live in fear that New York will be attacked again. Controversial representations are not only shown in Hollywood films but in video games as well, a great example of this would be Killzone. For example the physical appearance of the villains in the game, is very similar to way individuals from the Al Qaeda look. Both characters and members of the Al Qaeda cover the faces and heads excluding the eyes and carry similar hand weapons, arguably the media want to emphasise the immorality of both villains. Additionally, actions from the Killzone have also been inspired by the Al Qaeda, where the attacker puts the victim down to the knees with a gun against their head. These controversial links to terrorism through games and movies support Ralph Millibands argument, that

the mass media are the opium of people he believes that consumers of media look at everything through a black smoke screen, where nothing is clearly revealed because the ruling class are enforcing their political views to people in a vague manner. Similarly, Gramscis hegemonic approach is why Muslims are being mediated negatively, where the ruling class including the mass media have the ability to control the working class, where the subordinate group (working class) must agree with the dominant, because there are no alternatives so the enforced ideologies become common sense. In the case of these contentious links to terrorism, the media may enforce these negative representations as it is the ruling classs ideology about extremists as they want to make people agree with their political stances of Islamic terrorism, where these representations may be emphasised causing problems like increase in Islamaphobia. However, recently there has been some improvement of Muslim representation in the media. As researched, there was recently a documentary called the Muslims are coming (2013) where a group of comedians try to counter Islamaphobia, through stand-up comedy shows in different parts of America to raise awareness. This demonstrates an improvement in the way Muslims have been mediated as one of the comedians quoted we want to give America a big Muslim hug to show a positive representation of Muslims and a greater side to them then the media portray. Another way Muslims have been mediated positively, is through the ISPU (institute for social policy & understanding) an article based on media is improving the image of American Muslims, this article focuses on how Muslim representation has improved since the event of the 9/11 in 2001, and they analyse issues to do with Muslim communities worldwide. These all show that some parts of the media take care in the way Muslims are represented in the media. Overall, Muslims remain to be stereotyped and prejudiced just like any other group would be. Unfortunately, Muslims remain to be one of the most hated groups in America, especially by the upper class as Gramsci argues. This may be why a negative representation is reinforced all over the world as America has the power to show what they believe. As some sociologists would argue, western media imperialism is dominant. Personally, I believe that the media have had a major impact on the way Muslims have been treated due to the way they have been negatively represented in the media, however I have seen an improvement through my research in the last couple of years that brings hope for Islam as you cannot judge civilians based on a few disturbed individuals.