Issue 27, winter/spring 2019 https://doi.org/10.70090/MA27QMIC Abstract This study investigates how three young Arab influencers negotiate their identities in cyberspace. Abdallah Al Maghlouth, Abdulrahman Mohammed, and Laila Hzaineh were selected for this study because they were listed among the top MENA influencers by the Arab Social Media Summit (2015) or by …

Issue 27, winter/spring 2019 https://doi.org/10.70090/IBL27SRA Abstract Troubled by a history of misconceptions on Western silver screens, Arab and Muslim filmmakers have kept their cinematic productions thematically close to the reality of their postcolonial cultural and social conditions, while trying to represent their communities in complex ways. In many efforts of …

Issue 27, winter/spring 2019 https://doi.org/10.70090/CC27ALJB Abstract In December 2013, the pan-Arab TV station Al Mayadeen orchestrated a big public celebration of the former female fighter Jamila Bouhired. In this article, I analyze Al Mayadeen’s celebration of Bouhired as an iconization (Khalili 2009) and investigate how the TV station uses the …

Issue 27, winter/spring 2019 https://doi.org/10.70090/MGSE27PM Abstract The Egyptian Arabic song, “Boshret Kheir” or ‘good omen’, represents an example of the role of popular music in promoting populism, patriotism, and the ideology of Egyptian nationalism. Given the song’s popularity, this article poses the question: what transforms an ordinary pop song into …

Issue 26, summer/fall 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/NA18EYNC Abstract One lesson learned from Egypt’s 2011 uprising was that young people are highly active politically as witnessed by the emergence of the networked young citizen. As the country became more stable it was feared that members of this participatory culture would reject formal politics …

Issue 26, summer/fall 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/LB18MAVA Abstract This essay, based on the author’s fieldwork on Palestinian music and oral history, examines the position of singer and Arab Idol winner Mohammed Assaf in relation to the contemporary Palestinian struggle and the wider play of power in the Arab world. The issues discussed …

Issue 26, summer/fall 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/YY18YMRC Abstract Recently the Moroccan public had to grapple with what was perceived to be a worrying upsurge in youth crime related to Tsharmil or (cyber) bullying in the Moroccan vernacular. Mainstream media coverage of this issue ushered in an overwhelming sense of panic towards “deviant” …

Issue 26, summer/fall 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/HT18NMNA Abstract Music is the language that everyone understands. As an element of culture, music evolved with the development of civilizations. Some of the religious subgroups produced a unique type of music that echoed in the Arabian Peninsula as well as nearby civilizations, such as Andalusia …

Issue 25, winter/spring 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/KDCW18VF Abstract The rise of ideologically-driven lone actor terrorist attacks, coupled with the use of Internet-circulated media products as sources of inspiration, raises the need to understand the message strategies embedded in media campaigns of groups like ISIS. To better understand “enforcers” of ISIS’ interpretation of …

Issue 25, winter/spring 2018 https://doi.org/10.70090/RH18SRPI Patience. [The member] should have plenty of patience for enduring afflictions if the enemies overcome him. He should not abandon this great path and sell himself and his religion to the enemies for his freedom. He should be patient in performing the work, even if …