Arabs and Muslims in the Media: Race and Representation after 9/11

240 Pages·2012·18.79 MB·English

by  Evelyn Alsultany

Arabs and Muslims in the Media
CRITICAL CULTURAL COMMUNICATION
General Editors: Sarah Banet-Weiser and Kent A. Ono
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Edited by Michael G. Lacy and Kent A. Ono
Circuits of Visibility: Gender and Transnational Media Cultures
Edited by Radha S. Hegde
Commodity Activism: Cultural Resistance in Neoliberal Times
Edited by Roopali Mukherjee and Sarah Banet-Weiser
Arabs and Muslims in the Media: Race and Representation after 9/11
Evelyn Alsultany
Visualizing Atrocity: Arendt, Evil, and the Optics of Thoughtlessness
Valerie Hartouni
Arabs and Muslims in the Media
Race and Representation after 9/11
Evelyn Alsultany
a
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
www.nyupress.org
© 2012 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet Websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing.
Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs that
may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Alsultany, Evelyn.
Arabs and Muslims in the media : race and representation after 9/11 /
Evelyn Alsultany.
p. cm. — (Critical cultural communication)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8147-0731-9 (cl : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8147-0732-6 (pb : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8147-2917-5 (ebook)
ISBN 978-0-8147-3814-6 (ebook)
1. Arabs on television. 2. Muslims on television. 3. Stereotypes (Social
psychology) on television. 4. Television programs—United States —History—
21st century. I. Title.
pn1992.8.a7a58 2012
305.6'970973—dc23 2011051502
New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding
materials are chosen for strength and durability. We strive to use environmentally
responsible suppliers and materials to the greatest extent possible in publishing our
books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For my father, Kamal Ali Alsultany
1941–2011
In the idealized desire for national unity served up nightly on evening cable
and network newscasts, new actors—this time Arabs, Palestinians, Islamic
fundamentalists—have quickly become the bodies and cultures that the logic of
race marks as different and therefore potentially threatening to the national order.
Television’s role in this process is absolutely central, for it is television that makes
these images and representations of difference meaningful, legible, and familiar.
—Herman Gray, Watching Race
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
 Challenging the Terrorist Stereotype 18
 Mourning the Suspension of Arab American Civil Rights 47
 Evoking Sympathy for the Muslim Woman 71
 Regulating Sympathy for the Muslim Man 100
 Selling Muslim American Identity 132
Epilogue 163
Notes 179
Bibliography 205
Index 221
About the Author 227
vii
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Acknowledgments
This book began at Stanford University where I was fortunate to work with
and learn from exceptional scholars. David Palumbo-Liu, Akhil Gupta, and
Cherríe Moraga advised and challenged me, believing in my project on Arab
Americans even before the current renaissance in the field. Jackie Armijo-
Hussein, Ahmad Dallal, Purnima Mankekar, Paula Moya, and Renato Rosaldo
encouraged me to pursue my interests. Monica Moore and Jan Hafner at Mod-
ern Thought and Literature provided invaluable administrative and moral
support. My colleagues were both supportive and inspirational. I thank Lisa
Arellano, Yael Ben-zvi, Julia Carpenter, Raul Coronado Jr., Manishita Dass,
Eman Desouky, Maya Dodd, Nicole Fleetwood, Vida Mia Garcia, Mishuana
Goeman, Shona Jackson, Jackie Jenkins, Steven Lee, Bakirathi Mani, Allegra
McLeod, Hilton Obenzinger, Marcia Ochoa, Flavio Paniagua, Beth Piatote,
Sarah Ramirez, Rola Razek, Helle Rytkonen, Richard Simpson, Nirvana
Tanoukhi, Lisa B. Thompson, Kyla Wazana Tompkins, Tim’m T. West, and
Michelle Zamora. I am especially grateful to mis compañeras Madgalena Bar-
rera and Marisol Negrón. It is difficult to find the words to acknowledge Ebony
Coletu, who accompanied me throughout my years at Stanford. Ebony gave me
meticulous feedback, pushing me to think in new ways, dazzling me with her
brilliance and her friendship.
This project has been directly and indirectly shaped by several key mentors.
Dorothy Duff Brown has counseled me through my years as an assistant pro-
fessor. I would not have completed this book with my sanity intact had it not
been for our many conversations over the past few years and her encourage-
ment, guidance, and wisdom. The mentorship of M. Jacqui Alexander, Drucilla
Cornell, Penny Eckert, and Cherríe Moraga has had a lasting impact. Penny
Von Eschen’s mentorship and support have been a source of sustenance. Jack
G. Shaheen’s work has been foundational and inspirational. I am moved by his
support and faith in me. As for Melani McAlister, it is an embarrassment of
riches that she has read three versions of this manuscript and offered her close
engagement, feedback, and support. Her belief in the project and targeted feed-
back were instrumental to its fruition.
Ella Shohat has read the full manuscript in its various forms, providing
extensive feedback. She has also given me emotional support, guidance, and
ix