'Manufacturing Consent: Saudi and Amazon Deploy Twitter Bots to Insist They Are Virtuous'

albawaba, Manufacturing Consent: Saudi and Amazon Deploy Twitter Bots to Insist They Are Virtuous Allegations.

Hajj: how globalisation transformed the market for pilgrimage to Mecca

Seán McLoughlin, The Conversation, Hajj: how globalisation transformed the market for pilgrimage to Mecca, 15 Aug 2018

Iran hacking allegations

Independent, Iranian hackers attack UK universities to steal secret research allegations. "Hackers linked with the Iranian government are targeting universities and academic institutions around the world as part of a major campaign to steal unpublished research and obtain intellectual property, security researchers have revealed."

#hajj

The Times, Pilgrims make progress with haj app "This year the authorities have been determined to clean up the image of the haj, the annual pilgrimage of millions of Muslims to Saudi Arabia’s holy cities. In an attempt to bring it up to date, this week’s haj was, the government insists, “green, healthy and high-tech”." [pay walled article]

New and Noted: The Islamic State in Britain

CUP, Michael Kenney The Islamic State in Britain

al-Baghdadi speech

Reuters, Islamic State chief, in rare speech, urges followers to fight on "Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, in his first purported speech in nearly a year, has called on followers to fight on despite recent defeats, according to an audio recording posted on the group’s media outlet."

ISIS report

ICSR, Reintegrating ISIS Supporters in Syria: Efforts, Priorities and Challenges

Hajj Pod

Guardian, Hajj 'nap pods' being introduced for pilgrims to Saudi Arabia "A Saudi charity, the Haji and Mutamer Gift Charitable Association, is offering between 18 and 24 capsules for pilgrims to nap in for free in the coming days."

Hajj Tech

The National, Hajj 2018: bringing technology to the millennia-old pilgrimage " "The Saudi government is using technological advances to ease the pilgrimage for millions."

Temporarily off-line

I'm currently off-line and not updating this blog. I am still tweeting @garybunt. I will be updating the blog in due course.

In the meantime, my new book is published in October by the University of North Carolina Press.  It's available through all the usual channels. 

Normal service on this blog will be resumed as soon as possible.

Approaches to Digital Religious Studies

Amsterdam Institute for Humanities Research (AIHR),'Approaches to Digital Religious Studies' with Prof. Gary R. Bunt (University of Wales Trinity Saint David), 16 Apr 2018 "This presentation explores the approaches towards analysing researching religions in cyberspace, based on two decades of experience in analyzing, researching and writing about Islam and Muslims on the Internet. The field is virtual, but has a real-world impact on many levels, with increasing implications for Muslims in local and global contexts. As such, it has become an important subject for academic study. Specific and innovative methodological approaches are required, and these continue to evolve in response to changing issues and technological shifts. The presentation will reflect on experience to date, and consider ways in which digital content can be integrated into academic discourse, drawing upon approaches which are multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary in nature."

"Taqiyya": How An Obscure Islamic Concept Became An Obsession Of Anti-Muslim Activists

buzzfeed, "Taqiyya": How An Obscure Islamic Concept Became An Obsession Of Anti-Muslim Activists "I mean, 99.99% of Muslims don't even understand what taqiyya is, but every alt-right Twitter troll is an expert on Islamic theology now."

Indonesia

wsj, Indonesia’s Islamic Floggings Will Move Indoors Where Kids Can’t See and to stop viral videos

Islamic authority in Kurdistan issues fatwa against cryptocurrency

Rudaw, Islamic authority in Kurdistan issues fatwa against cryptocurrency "The KRG’s Supreme Fatwa Board has ruled against dealing in OneCoin, a type of cryptocurrency, most notably because of unknown sources dealing with it."

Digitising in Dubai

The National, Juma Al Majid’s quest for universal knowledge brings the world’s treasures online "Based in Deira, Dubai, the centre is situated close to the airport. Planes buzz low overhead, casting large shadows on the ground. In the digitisation room, copiers are at work at 11 desks, aiming for a target of 2,000 pages a day. Klieg lights illuminate each glass-topped machine, while workers take and return books from the wheeled carts next to them. The room, though stuffy with the heat of bodies and activity, hums with purpose."

Dreaming in Za'atari : Stories after Syria

Virtual reality tour of Za'atari.

'Salafis' in Germany

Deutsche Welle, Number of Salafists in Germany has doubled in past five years, 4 April 2018 "The number of individuals in Germany recognized as adherents of Salafism has reached a new all-time high, the interior ministry said. The growth is particularly fast in Germany's smallest states."

IS loyalty pledge

Reuters, Islamic State militants renew loyalty pledge to 'caliph' Baghdadi, 4 Apr 2018

"Malaysia can be Islamic fintech leader"

Malay Mail, Malaysia can be Islamic fintech leader, says Fitch Group unit, 5 Apr 2018

Israeli websites hacked

Alaraby, Hacked Israeli websites declare ‘Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine’ "Numerous homepages of Israeli schools, hospitals and municipalities displayed pictures of Friday's protests in Gaza, emblazoned with "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine" and accompanied by muezzin chants, after being hacked by cyber group Anonymous on Tuesday evening."