MUSLIM COMMUNITY

Muslim community

Muslim community

Q1- Media portrayal of Muslim in the most recent years?

Ans. the perception about Islam and Muslims still resonate the only stereotypical images that were once part of the medieval Europe. A recent survey by the Pew Foundation found more Americans distrustful of Islam than every before. To them, Islam is not peace or humility; it is violence and bloodshed. Viewers and readers know what jihad is; they have watched it live on FOX. American audiences are "witnesses" to people who call themselves Muslims who fight and kill in the name of a religion they call Islam. They see "Muslims" killing in the name of a greater purpose on TV almost everyday. The fact is that what they see is not true. Rather, what they are witnessing is in fact the confusion, hatred and in some cases, ignorance, of terrorists/extremists. Americans are largely accepting of their fellow citizens who are Muslims, but remain worried about radicals inside the United States, according to a new Newsweek Poll, the first the magazine has conducted on attitudes toward Islamic Americans. (Newsweek - July 20, 2007)

Terrorists/extremists have turned Islam's ideal of peace and harmony on its head. Rarely does one hear experts in the media saying that such actions are not sanctioned by the religion and have no place within Islam. For instance, to most Americans, the term jihad means bloodshed and tyranny. The American public also sees Osama bin Laden and his cronies on TV and believe them to be ambassadors of Islam. The American media is awash with tales of terror and oppression by terrorists. In some cases, these tales are true but in others, they can be much too tall. The way Jihad is projected in the American media and expounded by some Muslim extremists has an immediate role in Islam's negative portrayal. The present manifestation of jihad by terrorists has great audience appeal. It involves a lot of public opinion and allows room for media twists and dramatic flourish that bode well for the ratings.(Ejaz Haider,2003)

Justice Department officials say they were simply using all the tools now available to them to pursue criminals -- terrorists or otherwise. A Justice Department report given to members of Congress in Sept. 2003 cites more than a dozen cases not directly related to terrorism. In those cases, federal authorities have used their expanded power to investigate individuals, initiate wiretaps and other surveillance, or seize millions in tainted assets. For instance, the ability to secure nationwide warrants to obtain e-mail and electronic evidence "has proved invaluable in several sensitive non-terrorism investigations," including the tracking of an unidentified fugitive and an investigation into a computer hacker who stole a company's trade secrets, the report said.

The negative portrayal of Islam influences Muslims all over the world. Because of the actions of a handful of disillusioned if not powerful individuals, Islam as most Muslims know it is being viewed as a deadly disease and its followers as carriers about to infect the ...