Post-war Middle East events made violence central to US Muslim depictions

Evidence

Muslims as the threatening “Other” are found not only in the news but also on popular television programming and in films. Arab and Muslim characters have been a part of the American film and television industry’s history from the beginning, though depictions of these characters adapted to the times. With the United States’ rise to global superpower status after World War II, violence and terrorism became central features in representations of Muslims and Islam, mainly because of events in the Middle East that increasingly occupied the United States’ attention, including the establishment of Israel (1948), the Six-Day War (1967), the Arab oil embargo (1973), and the Iranian Revolution and hostage crisis (1979–1980). These events, covered extensively by the news media, fed the popular image of Muslims and Muslim-majority regions as sources of anti-Western, anti-American violence and terrorism. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 521

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to Edward Said’s Orientalism and the media-driven construction of the Islamic threat. — connects to: The 1979 Iranian revolution and Soviet invasion of Afghanistan triggered the Middle East buildup; Majorities in Western countries blamed Muslims for the cartoon conflict. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 419; The Westergaard cartoon was read as tying Muhammad and Islam to violence. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 412 (+17 more)

Broader Connections

• There are also traces of terrorism in American film, going back as far as 1926 with Old Ironsides. Jack Shaheen, an expert on the portrayal of Muslims and Arabs in Hollywood films, claimed that… #exemplifies (0.75)
• Even non-terrorism shows define Muslim characters through violence #exemplifies (0.70) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 533
• The image of Muslims shifted with military threat, not with religion per se #corroborates (0.70) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 95
• Islamophobic tropes become real violence through perceived enemy images #expands (0.65)
• Real-world conflict makes Hollywood Muslim stereotypes seem more credible to audiences #expands (0.65) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 544
• US facilitated Muslim violence when it served Cold War interests #corroborates (0.60) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 288
• Environmental framing made Muslim violence seem causally inevitable #expands (0.60)
• Anti-Palestinian racism historically produced Islamophobia in the United States #corroborates (0.60) — Evelyn Alsultany, Antisemitism and Islamophobia The…, 21
• Arab and Muslim representation in American film has been persistently vilifying #exemplifies (0.60) — Khaled A. Beydoun, American Islamophobia_ Understanding…, 674
• Media coverage of Muslim violence superficially supports an Islam-violence link #expands (0.60) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 282
• Media framing shapes American attitudes toward Islam and jihad #expands (0.60) — Asena Karipek, Portrayals of Jihad, 75
• American Muslims were a model minority before the September 11 attacks #qualifies (0.50) — Arsalan Iftikhar, Fear of a Muslim Planet_ Global…, 598