The case of WikiIslam: scientification of Islamophobia or legitimate critique of Islam?

Abstract

In this article we introduce and utilize the concept scientification of Islamophobia to analyze a website called WikiIslam, and the way that its contents are used by websites and online users in a complex global ecology of knowledge production and consumption regarding Islam and Muslims. We have used an online content marketing platform called SemRush to locate the most disseminated WikiIslam articles on the web, and we have conducted a content analysis of the most popular articles, as well as of the webpages that link to them. While practicing a seemingly academic means of referencing, we find articles on WikiIslam to be selective, particularly when it comes to topics, and to some degree when it comes to sources. Furthermore, we find that articles from WikiIslam are used as references in support of bigoted claims about Islam and Muslims on other websites. Finally, we find that some users who visit WikiIslam do so while looking for basic information about Islam on Google, meaning that WikiIslam has some success in functioning as an online encyclopedia about Islam. We conclude that these three findings highlight some of the key ways that the scientification of Islamophobia is manifesting online.