New and Noted: Magdalena Karolak, The Social Media Wars: Sunni and Shi'a Identity Conflicts in the Age of Web 2.0 and the Arab Spring

Book: The Social Media Wars: Sunni and Shi'a Identity Conflicts in the Age of Web 2.0 and the Arab Spring | Digital Islam  "This monograph evaluates the role of the social media in strengthening and transforming religious identities in the aftermath of the Arab Spring. Focusing specifically on Bahrain, this study assesses how the sectarian interpretation of the protests exacerbated social divisions and reverberated around the Middle East intensifying sectarian loyalties. The social media contribute to negotiation and re-construction of the collective identities of the groups involved in the 2011 uprising, which is visible through their online manifestations."

iMuslims Review

"iMuslims is the best overview of the Muslim Internet to date. It is up-to-date, comprehensive, and should be compulsory reading for students and scholars of Islam, media, and politics in the Middle East."

Sune Haugbolle, H-Net, H-Levant, The Muslim Internet, Feb 23, 2010

Review of i-Muslims, which raises some interesting issues regarding the identity/-ies of "i-Muslims". I very much welcome informed criticism of the nature presented in this review, although I don't have time now for a detailed response. In one way, I see the term "i-Muslims" as a multi-faceted and very flexible approach to exploring multiple identities of internet users (who happen to be 'Muslim') online. I'd like to unpack some of the other comments in the review at a later time. Hopefully, my book will encourage others to explore the questions raised in Sune Haugbolle's review.

The review also features on the pages of the Copenhagen University Middle East and Islam Network