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| Semester | fall semester 2018 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Selen Etingü Breslaw (g.etingue@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | DIGITAL MEDIA, ISLAM, AND POLITICS IN THE MIDDLE EAST Assistant Professor Dr. H. Akin Unver (Kadir Has University / Oxford University / Alan Turing Institute): Akin Unver is a computational conflict researcher, with a specialization in extremist non-state actors. He is also interested in different ways in which Internet data can be harvested, visualized and modelled. Based at Kadir Has University, he is a non-resident fellow at Oxford University (Center for Technology and Global Affairs, DPIR) and the Alan Turing Institute, London. Previously, he was the Ertegün Lecturer of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University and a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Michigan’s Department of Sociology. He is the winner of MESA’s 2010 Malcolm H. Kerr ‘best dissertation in the field of social sciences’ award. Purpose: This workshop immerses students in comparative studies of Islamist politics in the Middle East and North Africa through the lens of how violent and non-violent Islamist state and non-actors, as well as their opponents, use and manipulate digital and social media to further their goals. The workshop is specifically interested in exploring themes in how the region’s religious, political and social forces interact and mobilize in digital space, including their competing organizational networks and narrative claims. As an increasingly more popular and politically-relevant topic in the region and beyond, we seek applicants whose work lie at the intersection of ICTs (information and communication technologies – such as Whatsapp, Signal, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and other web channels) and social media platforms on the one hand, and religion, politics, culture and mobilization on the other. Those that are interested in, and work on how online and offline mobilization, behaviour and organization interact in the Middle East are particularly encouraged to apply. Related themes that this workshop will explore include: 1. The definition of "Islamism," Islamic vs. Islamist vs. jihadist hierarchies, communication strategies, and organizational networks of influence in the digital world: a. How existing religious hierarchies adapt to digital media: formal religious institutions, traditional pipeline of fatwas, how do traditional formal religious communication differs from online. b. Digital culture of ICT-imams: how off-the-grid imams and religious figures emerge and gather followers on Twitter, Youtube etc. and create a wedge between the ummah and traditional sources of Islamic authority c. Networks of extremism and tolerance: which types and formations of religious hierarchies and networks preach extremism online and which others emphasize tolerance, integration and co-existence. d. How do ICTs impact religious resource mobilization: how digital technologies impact the way in which religious groups organize, maintain ties and act in a uniform matter. e. Islamist political parties and voter mobilization in digital space: how do various strands of Islamist movements interact with the digital space and other types of party formations? 2. Digital Surveillance, Censorship, Protest, Voice and Opposition in the Middle East: a. Online and offline interaction in protests: what is the role of ICTs and platforms in voicing grievance, mobilizing resources and challenge hegemony? b. Protest technology in the Middle East: how do protest technologies (drones, encryption, messaging) impact the way in which protests are organized and mobilized? Do they provide a significant advantage to opposition groups, or have the region’s states fully developed capabilities to counter them? c. Circumvention and privacy: to what extent could the post-Snowden awareness on state censorship enable technologies that disable surveillance and government monitoring? Have they been successful in enabling freedom of expression and voice? d. ‘Who Censors What?’ Allowed vs. criminalized forms of digital expression: what types of content get censored in which Middle Eastern country? All countries officially censor content that is against moral values, but censorship is also a highly political issue whose content that varies across different countries in the region. e. External Actors of Middle Eastern Surveillance: although surveillance and censorship is rampant in the Middle East, most of the technology that enables the region’s states to do so come from democratic countries? What are the stakes of Western surveillance companies in the region and how do they impact surveillance politics? 3. Organized Diversion: Fake News, Trolls Bots: a. Purpose and mechanics of organized diversion: The influence of digital spoilers and distractors on the region’s politics has grown significantly in the last few years, from the Saudi-Qatari-UAE dispute to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such digital diversion methods have grown into an analytical field of their own. b. Regime type and narratives of diversion: We have to focus on which actors have created fake news concerning these moments, the tools and techniques that have enabled the creation and dispersion of such narratives, political uses and abuses of such narratives, and motivations for their creation and international ripple effects of especially potent fake news narratives and dispersal strategies. 4. Online Radicalization and ICT Use of Extremist Groups: a. How jihadi groups recruit, track and mobilize online: social media allows extremists to recruit and propagandize across borders, in a way that 20th-century technology never allowed. This renders modern extremism deadlier, given their reach and ability to trigger coordinated, as well as lone-wolf attacks. b. Power bargaining and networking behaviour or radical groups: Extremist groups not only compete with their declared enemies, but also with each other in recruitment and diffusion of extremism messaging. How these groups compete in digital space gives us a clear idea on how their offline interests structures and strategies are shaped. In addition to the presentations and discussions by the guest lecturers, the workshop will offer the participants a one-to-one session with the lecturers, in order to create an opportunity to expand and explore specific questions related to the workshop and/or to the participant’s own research. Due to limited time, approx. 20 minute, one-to-one sessions will be offered on a first come basis. |
| Learning objectives | This workshop immerses students in comparative studies of Islamist politics in the Middle East and North Africa through the lens of how violent and non-violent Islamist state and non-actors, as well as their opponents, use and manipulate digital and social media to further their goals. The workshop is specifically interested in exploring themes in how the region’s religious, political and social forces interact and mobilize in digital space, including their competing organizational networks and narrative claims. As an increasingly more popular and politically-relevant topic in the region and beyond, we seek applicants whose work lie at the intersection of ICTs (information and communication technologies – such as Whatsapp, Signal, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and other web channels) and social media platforms on the one hand, and religion, politics, culture and mobilization on the other. Those that are interested in, and work on how online and offline mobilization, behaviour and organization interact in the Middle East are particularly encouraged to apply. Related themes that this workshop will explore include: 1. The definition of "Islamism," Islamic vs. Islamist vs. jihadist hierarchies, communication strategies, and organizational networks of influence in the digital world: a. How existing religious hierarchies adapt to digital media: formal religious institutions, traditional pipeline of fatwas, how do traditional formal religious communication differs from online. b. Digital culture of ICT-imams: how off-the-grid imams and religious figures emerge and gather followers on Twitter, Youtube etc. and create a wedge between the ummah and traditional sources of Islamic authority c. Networks of extremism and tolerance: which types and formations of religious hierarchies and networks preach extremism online and which others emphasize tolerance, integration and co-existence. d. How do ICTs impact religious resource mobilization: how digital technologies impact the way in which religious groups organize, maintain ties and act in a uniform matter. e. Islamist political parties and voter mobilization in digital space: how do various strands of Islamist movements interact with the digital space and other types of party formations? 2. Digital Surveillance, Censorship, Protest, Voice and Opposition in the Middle East: a. Online and offline interaction in protests: what is the role of ICTs and platforms in voicing grievance, mobilizing resources and challenge hegemony? b. Protest technology in the Middle East: how do protest technologies (drones, encryption, messaging) impact the way in which protests are organized and mobilized? Do they provide a significant advantage to opposition groups, or have the region’s states fully developed capabilities to counter them? c. Circumvention and privacy: to what extent could the post-Snowden awareness on state censorship enable technologies that disable surveillance and government monitoring? Have they been successful in enabling freedom of expression and voice? d. ‘Who Censors What?’ Allowed vs. criminalized forms of digital expression: what types of content get censored in which Middle Eastern country? All countries officially censor content that is against moral values, but censorship is also a highly political issue whose content that varies across different countries in the region. e. External Actors of Middle Eastern Surveillance: although surveillance and censorship is rampant in the Middle East, most of the technology that enables the region’s states to do so come from democratic countries? What are the stakes of Western surveillance companies in the region and how do they impact surveillance politics? 3. Organized Diversion: Fake News, Trolls Bots: a. Purpose and mechanics of organized diversion: The influence of digital spoilers and distractors on the region’s politics has grown significantly in the last few years, from the Saudi-Qatari-UAE dispute to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such digital diversion methods have grown into an analytical field of their own. b. Regime type and narratives of diversion: We have to focus on which actors have created fake news concerning these moments, the tools and techniques that have enabled the creation and dispersion of such narratives, political uses and abuses of such narratives, and motivations for their creation and international ripple effects of especially potent fake news narratives and dispersal strategies. 4. Online Radicalization and ICT Use of Extremist Groups: a. How jihadi groups recruit, track and mobilize online: social media allows extremists to recruit and propagandize across borders, in a way that 20th-century technology never allowed. This renders modern extremism deadlier, given their reach and ability to trigger coordinated, as well as lone-wolf attacks. b. Power bargaining and networking behaviour or radical groups: Extremist groups not only compete with their declared enemies, but also with each other in recruitment and diffusion of extremism messaging. How these groups compete in digital space gives us a clear idea on how their offline interests structures and strategies are shaped. |
| Weblink | Annual Doctoral Workshops |
| Admission requirements | This workshop is designed for PhD students. Students who wish to attend are asked to write an email to Dr. Selen Etingü (g.etingue@unibas.ch), with a biographical abstract explaining their research interests and projects as well as their academic background (max. 400 words, in 3rd person singular, in English). The deadline for the application is August 6, 2018. Applicants will receive an answer regarding their participation on August 10. Please note that the places are limited. Participation is on an application basis and all prospective participants need to send a biographical abstract for the selection process. Any MA students who wish to take part in this workshop, also need to fulfill the admission requirements. Registering for the workshop will not be enough to take part in this workshop, without fulfilling the admission requirements and a notification email to Dr.Selen Etingü. |
| Course application | This workshop is designed for PhD students. Students who wish to attend are asked to write an email to Dr. Selen Etingü (g.etingue@unibas.ch), with a biographical abstract explaining their research interests and projects as well as their academic background (max. 400 words, in 3rd person singular, in English). The deadline for the application is August 6, 2018. Applicants will receive an answer regarding their participation on August 10. Please note that the places are limited. Participation is on an application basis and all prospective participants need to send a biographical abstract for the selection process. Any MA students who wish to take part in this workshop, also need to fulfill the admission requirements. Registering for the workshop will not be enough to take part in this workshop, without fulfilling the admission requirements and a notification email to Dr.Selen Etingü. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Course auditors welcome |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Doktorat Near & Middle Eastern Studies: Empfehlungen (PhD subject: Near & Middle Eastern Studies) Modul: Europäisierung und Globalisierung (Master's Studies: European Global Studies) Modul: Politik und Geschichte der Region (Neuzeit und Gegenwart) (Master's degree subject: Near & Middle Eastern Studies) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Participants are entitled to 3 ECTS points for successful participation. Participants will receive a list of required readings from the guest lecturer by August 10, 2018. Successful participation at the workshop is subject to the mandatory completion of the required readings in advance and active participation in the workshop discussions. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Nahost-Studien |