Seeking truth about Muslims: Critical media literacies in an era of islamophobia

Across various forms of media, Muslims are often portrayed as a homogenous group prone to violence, yet scholars have increasingly called upon schools and teachers to transcend stereotypes and prepare students to understand Muslims in more thoughtful and nuanced ways. This qualitative case study recounts how students and a teacher in a high school multicultural studies class investigated problematic media materials about Islam sent by an organization called the Christian Seniors Association. Drawing upon Mihailidis’s (2014) 5A’s of Media Literacy heuristic, I analyzed field notes from classroom observations, interviews, and student produced artifacts. Findings revealed how a teacher’s use of questioning techniques and encouragement of close readings of texts supported students to critically analyze media materials. Yet, opportunities for students to address issues of power and take up activist-oriented roles in responding to media were limited. Implications are offered for research and practice