Suggested Syllabus

America, Islam & the War of Ideas

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Suggested Syllabus for courses based on

Reflections in a Bloodshot Lens: America, Islam & the War of Ideas

by Lawrence Pintak

Director of the Adham Center for Electronic Journalism, The American University in Cairo

Faculty seeking additional suggestions and guidance for course development may contact Pintak at lpintak@aucegypt.edu

Overview

The years since 9/11 have been characterized by an explosion of anti-American sentiment among the world’s Muslims. At the same time, despite the Bush administration’s “war on terror”, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of terrorist acts. An understanding of the reasons for these developments is crucial to creating future policies on terrorism, the Middle East, and the broader Muslim world.

To what extent have historic animosities and stereotypes shaped the relationship? What is the role of past and present U.S. Middle East policy? How have governments and terrorist leaders used (and abused) the media? What has been the impact of the rise of satellite television and media reform in Muslim-majority countries? Does there exist a “clash of civilizations”? And, most critically: how do Arabs and non-Arab Muslims perceive U.S. policies and actions since 9/11? These and other questions will be explored through discussions, readings and an examination of recent reporting (with extensive reference to real-time events).

The course will provide students with a baseline understanding of Islam, Muslim perceptions of U.S. policy, and the psychology of terrorism. We will explore the distinctions between Islam as a religion and Islam as a political force; between Muslim believers and Muslim fundamentalists; and between the societies across the vast arc of Muslim-majority countries from West Africa to Southeast Asia. We will then examine in-depth how the Iraq war has shaped Muslim perceptions, and we will look at the rise of political Islam as part of the democratic process in countries as diverse as Egypt and Indonesia.

Required Reading

Books:

Miller, John, and Aaron Kenedi. Inside Islam: The Faith, the People, and the Conflicts of the World's Fastest-Growing Religion. New York: Marlowe & Co., 2002.

Pintak, Lawrence. Reflections in a Bloodshot Lens: America, Islam & the War of Ideas. London and Ann Arbor: Pluto Books/Univ. of Michigan Press, 2006.

Sarwar, Ghulam. Islam: Beliefs and Teachings. Nottingham: The Muslim Educational Trust, 2000.

Books to be excerpted in CoursePack:

Cleary, Thomas. The Essential Koran: Heart of Islam. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993.

Dale F. Eickelman and Jon W. Anderson.  New Media in the Muslim World: The Emerging Public Sphere, Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2003.

Esposito, John L. Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Hoffman, Bruce. Inside Terrorism. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998.

Course Calendar (28 class meetings)

1.      Course Overview

Reading:

Pintak: Preface IV-XVIII

CoursePack:

Arundhati Roy, "The Algebra of Infinite Justice," The Guardian, Sep 29, 2001.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4266289,00.html

2.      What is a “worldview” and who cares?

Reading:

Pintak: Introduction 1-12

3.      Islam 101: The basics

Reading:

Miller & Kenedi 1-80.

4.      Islam: Liturgy and literature

Class Meets at local Islamic center

Reading:       

Sarwar: “The Family of Imraan,” “Women,” “The Table,” “Light,” and “Basic Duties of Islam.”

CoursePack:

Excerpts from:

Thomas Cleary, The Essential Koran: Heart of Islam (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993).

Internet

Rumi, The Rubaiyat at http://www.khamush.com/rubaiyat.htm

5.      The Muslim World – Part One: The Sunnis

Reading:       

Miller & Kenedi 107-127.

6.      The Muslim World – Part Two: The Shi’a

Reading:       

Miller & Kenedi 81-92.

7.      History of a relationship: Arab/Muslim perceptions of the U.S.

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter One, 15-29

8.      U.S. coverage of Arabs and Muslims

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Two, 30-57

9.      The Arab media

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Three, 58-73

10.  The history of terrorism

Reading:

Esposito 3-70

CoursePack:

Hoffman: “Defining Terrorism” (13-44)

Hoffman: “The Internationalization of Terrorism” (67-86)

11.  Radical Islamist terrorism

Reading:

Esposito 71-117

12.  Media and terrorism

Reading:       

CoursePack:

Hoffman: “Terrorism, the Media and Public Opinion.” (131-155)

13. Political Islam: Islamists vs. modernists

Reading:

Esposito 118-160

Internet

Council on Foreign Relations, “Q&A on Islam and Democracy,” http://www.cfr.org/publication/7708/middle_east.html

Islam and Democracy, U.S. Institute for Peace, Special Report 93. http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/sr93.html

Radwan Masmoudi, “The Silenced Majority: Liberal Islam,” Journal of Democracy, April 2003. http://www.islam-democracy.org/art_jod_april-2003.asp

Ulil Abshar-Abdalla, “Freshening up our understanding of Islam,” Kompas, Nov. 18, 2002 http://islamlib.com/en/page.php?page=article&id=325

  Robin Bush, “Islam and Civil Society in Indonesia,” 6^th annual conference, Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy. [Final Paper (PDF)]

14. The power of language

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Four, 77-102

15.  Post-9/11 Terrorism: Myth & Reality

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Five, 103-132

16.  Bin Laden: Millennialist or Revolutionary?

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Six, 133-149

17.  Al-Jazeera and the Arab Information Revolution

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Seven, 153-176

CoursePack

Hefner, Robert W. "Civic Pluralism Denied? The New Media and Jihadi Violence in Indonesia." In New Media in the Muslim World : The Emerging Public Sphere, edited by Dale F. Eickelman and Jon W. Anderson, 159-79. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2003.

Internet

Peter Maass. “When Al-Qaeda Calls,” The New York Times Magazine, Feb. 2, 2003. http://www.petermaass.com/core.cfm?p=1&mag=94&magtype=1

18. Israel & Palestine: The Heart of the Middle East Story

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Eight, 177-199

19.  “Patriotic Journalism”: The media in Iraq

Reading:

Pintak: Chapter Nine, 200-234

Internet

Michael Massing. “Now They Tell Us,” The New York Review of Books, Feb. 26, 2004. http://www.nybooks.com/articles/16922

James Bamford. “The Man Who Sold the War,” Rolling Stone, Nov. 17, 2005. http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/_/id/8798997?pageid=rs.Home&pageregion=single7&rnd=1132253345109&has-player=false

20. Reshaping Identity: Indonesia and U.S. policy

Reading:       

Pintak: Chapter Ten, 237-257

21.  Public Diplomacy: The ‘Happy Muslims’ campaign

Reading:       

Pintak: Chapter Eleven, 258-281

Internet

Edward P. Djerjian, "Changing Minds, Winning Peace: A New Strategic Direction for U.S. Diplomacy in the Arab and Muslim World," (Washington, D.C.: Advisory Group for Public Diplomacy for the Arab and Muslim World, U.S. House of Representatives, 2003).

http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/24882.pdf

22. Symbols of Empire: Abu Ghraib

Reading:       

Pintak: Chapter Twelve, 282-303

23.  New directions in Muslim politics and U.S. policy

Reading:       

Pintak: Epilogue, 304-313

Internet

Arab Human Development Report. “The Time Has Come”: A Call for Freedom and Good Governance in the Arab World, 2004. http://cfapp2.undp.org/rbas/ahdr_2004/ahdr2.cfm?menu=3&submenu=3&subsubmenu=1

 Sharon Otterman. “Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt’s Parliamentary Elections,” Council on Foreign Relations, Dec. 1, 2005. http://www.cfr.org/publication/9319/muslim_brotherhood_and_egypts_parliamentary_elections.html

Daily Staff Staff, “Islamic Nations Vow to Combat Extremism,” The Daily Star, Dec. 9, 2005. http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=20641

24. Presentations

25.  Presentations

26.  Presentations

27.  Presentations

28.  Exam Review

Assignments (Undergraduate courses)

“Fishbowl” exam: This is a graded in-class discussion format exam. Five people at a time will occupy the hot seats at the front of the room, I will throw out a question/statement (based on the readings to-date), and you will each be expected to contribute three substantive comments to the discussion before leaving the circle and being replaced by someone else. Sounds strange, but it does work (if you’ve done the readings).

Comparative Media Paper: This 1,500-2,000 word paper will analyze international coverage of a specific period (e.g. two weeks) or event in the “war on terror” or the invasion of Iraq. You will choose one U.S. news organization, one from Europe or Australia, and one from the Islamic world and compare and contrast their coverage during the period you are studying. Key elements which should be addressed:

ü        How do they approach the story?

ü        Are they emphasizing the same aspects?

ü        Are they using similar photographs to illustrate the story?

ü        Does the reporting reflect a point of view, and if so, how are they similar or different?

ü        How do their editorials and opinion columns compare?

The paper should cite specific examples and consist of the student’s own analysis, not that of someone else.

A one-paragraph summary of the period/topic to be studied and the three media to be monitored should be emailed to me by the deadline listed below. Failure to meet the deadline will cost you five points off your paper’s grade, so early submission is encouraged. Both should be delivered to me electronically through CourseTools.

Current Affairs Quizzes: These are ten-question multiple-choice quizzes based on headlines from The New York Times in the areas of terrorism, Islam, the Middle East, and politics in the Muslim world.

Country Policy Team Projects: You will be divided up into country teams. Each member of the team will examine how Islam impacts various aspects of policy in and toward that country. You will produce a PowerPoint presentation lasting about ten minutes for each student. This is not a “group” project per se, in that you are each presenting your own report, but coordination to avoid overlap is required. Topics will be assigned after the mid-term break. Although presentations will be spread out over several days, in the interest of fairness, all PowerPoint presentations must be delivered on the same date. The PowerPoint should include a bibliography.

Graduate Assignments (in addition to above)

Policy Analysis Paper: The final paper will involve a discussion of a particular aspect of future U.S. policy toward the Muslim world (e.g. “war on terror,” Iraq, Public Diplomacy, relations with a particular country, etc.). You will critically evaluate current policy, examine possible alternatives, and then argue for a particular approach. Papers should be approximately 1,500-2,000 words.

Response Talks: In lieu of response papers to readings, you will be expected to give at least one 10-15 minute “response talk.” Each class will include at least one of these brief presentations on one of the assigned readings. Assignments will be distributed early in the term.