Covering Muslims: American Newspapers in Comparative Perspective
Inaugural lesson of Erik Bleich, Fulbright-Tocqueville Distinguished Chair from Middlebury College, hosted by Sciences Po, Lyon
March 31 at 6pm
Aphithéatre Aubrac, Sciences Po
14 ave Berthelot, Lyon
Conference in English, free admission
Livestream: https://vimeo.com/event/2001656
For decades, critics have complained about negative media portrayals of Muslims. But how negative are these portrayals, really? In this talk, Erik Bleich presents the results of the first systematic, large-scale analysis of American newspaper coverage of Muslims. The resounding conclusion is that coverage of Muslims is remarkably negative by any measure. American newspapers have been consistently negative across the two-decade period between 1996 and 2016. Articles on Muslims are more negative than those touching on groups as diverse as Catholics, Jews, Hindus, African Americans, Latinos, Mormons, or atheists. Strikingly, even articles about mundane topics tend to be negative. Through their coverage, media outlets likely contribute to pervasive Islamophobia. To fight this, readers and journalists must “tone check” the media rather than simply accepting negative associations with Muslims or other marginalized groups.
