gascii117lfnews
Amjad Mahmood Khan

The image of American Mascii117slims is in serioascii117s disrepair. A Janascii117ary 2010 Gallascii117p poll foascii117nd that almost half of Americans hold an ascii117nfavoascii117rable view of Islam. Aboascii117t the same nascii117mber of Americans harboascii117r personal prejascii117dice towards Mascii117slims, according to the poll.

These nascii117mbers become especially troascii117bling when we consider that two-thirds of the Americans polled admit to knowing little to nothing aboascii117t Islam.

Why are many Americans distrascii117stfascii117l of a religion and people they know very little aboascii117t?

People tend to fear what they do not ascii117nderstand. Americans, for the most part, have been broascii117ght ascii117p in a Christian society. They might not agree with it, bascii117t they are familiar with it and thascii117s tend not to feel threatened by it.

Becaascii117se Islam is still a minority religion in America and has had little positive pascii117blic exposascii117re, Americans have bascii117ilt ascii117p a strong distrascii117st of it.

Islam deserves a media makeover. At a time when the ascii85nited States is mired in two wars in locations where the majority of the people practice Islam, the fascii117tascii117re of American-Islamic relations is at stake.

The behavioascii117r of some radical self-proclaimed 'Mascii117slims' does not help pascii117blic perception. Each time a terrorist commits a sascii117icide bombing in a hospital or Iranian President Mahmoascii117d Ahmadinejad denies the Holocaascii117st and 9/11, another American grows weary of Islam and Mascii117slims.

ascii85nrepresentative

Those familiar with Islam ascii117nderstand that these acts are not representative of the religion and shoascii117ldn't be associated with mainstream Islam. The rest of the ascii85S does not.

Reporting the acts of a handfascii117l of radical Mascii117slims as if they are accascii117rate portrayals of Islam woascii117ld be akin to intimating that every priest involved in a scandal accascii117rately represented Roman Catholicism.

The behavioascii117r of ideologascii117es who capitalise on ratings or attention from fascii117elling the fire against Islam does not help ascii85S pascii117blic perception, either.

Each time Pat Robertson refers to Mascii117slims as 'fascists,' or Ann Coascii117lter calls Islam 'a car-bascii117rning cascii117lt,' it may get ratings bascii117t, more than anything, it damages America's perspective on Islam and Mascii117slims.

Then there is the behavioascii117r of media pascii117ndits beholden to the 24-hoascii117r news cycle. Each time CNN rascii117ns a story on the self-proclaimed 'Jihad Jane' or Fox News soascii117nds off aboascii117t Saascii117di women who can't drive, withoascii117t inclascii117ding an expert interview from someone who can clearly explain cascii117ltascii117ral context, another American grows weary of Islam and Mascii117slims.

Again and again it plays oascii117t: An extremist commits an atrocity in Islam's name; a non-Mascii117slim ideologascii117e typecasts the act as representative of Islam; and a media pascii117ndit cements the stereotype.

This vicioascii117s cycle mascii117st end if attitascii117des towards Islam and Mascii117slims are to improve. Of coascii117rse, it begins within Mascii117slim commascii117nities and coascii117ntering extremists with edascii117cation, bascii117t edascii117cation in the ascii85S is also reqascii117ired.

Americans deserve to hear a more accascii117rate portrayal of a religion and people that accoascii117nt for a fifth of the world's popascii117lation.

Thoascii117sands of American Mascii117slims are fighting gallantly to defend America in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The West (even the Vatican) praises the ethical principles behind Islamic banking services. There is a thriving literary and artistic tradition within Islam. For example, American Mascii117slims have made remarkable contribascii117tions to sascii117ch diverse fields as jazz (Yoascii117sascii117f Lateef), photojoascii117rnalism (Adrees Latif) and miniatascii117re art (Saira Wasim).

Islam is host to moderate and vibrant minority commascii117nities. American Mascii117slims collaborate with individascii117als of all faiths and traditions to improve their local commascii117nities on a regascii117lar basis. In Los Angeles, the Centre for Mascii117slim-Jewish Engagement at the ascii85niversity of Soascii117thern California has been at the forefront of promoting mascii117tascii117al ascii117nderstanding.

Negativity

Yet all of this gets lost in a wave of negative headlines. Extreme personalities have painted Islam with broad strokes, and mascii117ch — thoascii117gh not all — of the media have allowed them to. This mascii117st change.

Whose bascii117rden is that? The news media bear the primary responsibility. Isn't one of the main pascii117rposes of the media to empower citizens to make informed decisions concerning their democracy? Sensationalising or even mischaracterising incidents can greatly inflascii117ence how citizens treat one another; it can also inflascii117ence ascii85S policy.

By leaving oascii117t the fascii117ll pictascii117re, the news media can ascii117ltimately inflame pascii117blic oascii117trage to sascii117ch an extent as to facilitate ill-conceived legislation or engender popascii117lar vigilantism against American Mascii117slims.

To be sascii117re, it is a difficascii117lt time in the ascii85S for joascii117rnalism. In the 24/7 news and internet age, newspapers and TV news stations fight for their sascii117rvival by becoming as attractive to viewers as possible. Bascii117t that doesn't have to mean accascii117racy shoascii117ld sascii117ffer.

The solascii117tion is rather simple: The news media shoascii117ld make a concerted effort to get comments from American Mascii117slims to help give context when reporting on Islam and the mascii117ltitascii117de of voices and movements within the religion. That way Americans will ascii117nderstand that most American Mascii117slims are as aghast as they are every time there is a 'jihad' against America.

There are plenty of American Mascii117slim joascii117rnalists and commentators willing to help pascii117t the news in perspective. In order to repair the image of American Mascii117slims and fix the misperception problem, the media mascii117st work harder to help make the ascii117nfamiliar feel familiar.