"Framing Islam: How media coverage shapes perceptions of Muslim neighbors and Islamic threats" -  In recent years, growing communities of Muslim-Americans have faced tensions over practicing their faith against the backdrop of global conflict and terrorism. These tensions are represented on local levels in media coverage when Muslims assert their philosophical right to exist within American society. Bowe’s talk will examine the ways the routine decision-making processes of media workers shape the public’s perceptions of Muslims in the U.S. He will focus on his research into the coverage of a series of recent controversies, including debates over mosque construction or proposals to preemptively ban Shariah from American jurisprudence. He will discuss the ways some reporting exhibits Islamophobia, or indiscriminate negative attitudes directed at Islam, while other coverage shows evidence of Islamophilia, which is the stereotypical "good Muslims” who are model citizens in contrast to "bad Muslims" who serve as rhetorical enemies. Bowe will discuss the tendency for media discourse to treat Muslims as monolithic others, rather than individuals with a range of beliefs and experiences. 

Brian J. Bowe is an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism at WWU  He is veteran journalist, author, and educator whose work examines the interplay of journalism and culture in multiple settings. Bowe earned his Ph.D. in Michigan State University’s Media and Information Studies program. His research speciality is media framing, and particularly news coverage of Muslims in the U.S. Before entering academia, Bowe worked at newspapers in Michigan and New Hampshire and spent a decade in public relations. He has written extensively about music, publishing books about Judas Priest, The Ramones and The Clash. He co-edited the anthology CREEM: America’s Only Rock ’n’ Roll Magazine (2007 Collins) and has written liner notes for releases by Iggy & the Stooges, the MC5 and Was (Not Was).