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Counterpublics and New Media in Istanbul. A field study on Islamist students.
Last modified: 2011-07-03
Abstract
With the emergence of Muslim study circles (Yavuz 2006), Muslim cafés (Kömecoglu, 2006), Muslim dormitories (Türkmen 2006) and Islamist intellectuals (Karasipahi 2008) leading scholars have pointed to the development of an Islamist counterpublic in Turkey (Yavuz 2003, Göle 2006). Istanbul, as an urban area and destination for many upwardly mobile Muslims also experiences the post-Islamist turn (Roy 2004, Saktanber 2010) what the development of a new type of study circles among mobile urban university students shows. Their study circles are not based on neighourhood or kin relations, but rather on Islamist interests for a religious as well as political reform project.
In a city where students often live miles apart from one another the communication via internet has become indispensable. My field research on one of these student groups is at the core of my dissertation project. The students I have worked with in 2010 regularly meet once a week for study reasons and discuss the Quran as well as important Muslim intellectuals and politicans. The “real” meetings of the group often tend to be sort of a history class whereas their communication via an E-mail list and Facebook have attracted wider audiences and have become great platforms of vivid discussion on daily politics and a new approach towards a reformist Islam. I have been able to conduct participant observation in the group’s offline and online activities. An anti-kemalist group the students are engaged in organising demonstrations, exhibitions, discussion rounds and many more activities. The coordination of various activities is organised via Internet, suggestions and changes are discussed on the E-mail list, they socialize via facebook or post their events there.
In my study I want to explore the internet use of a group of Islamist students with regard to how media use helps them to further develop a new Islamist-self and an Islamist counterpublic.
In a city where students often live miles apart from one another the communication via internet has become indispensable. My field research on one of these student groups is at the core of my dissertation project. The students I have worked with in 2010 regularly meet once a week for study reasons and discuss the Quran as well as important Muslim intellectuals and politicans. The “real” meetings of the group often tend to be sort of a history class whereas their communication via an E-mail list and Facebook have attracted wider audiences and have become great platforms of vivid discussion on daily politics and a new approach towards a reformist Islam. I have been able to conduct participant observation in the group’s offline and online activities. An anti-kemalist group the students are engaged in organising demonstrations, exhibitions, discussion rounds and many more activities. The coordination of various activities is organised via Internet, suggestions and changes are discussed on the E-mail list, they socialize via facebook or post their events there.
In my study I want to explore the internet use of a group of Islamist students with regard to how media use helps them to further develop a new Islamist-self and an Islamist counterpublic.