Virtually Islamic: Computer-mediated Communication Cyber Islamic Environments

This is the first broad-ranging academic survey to explore how Islam and the internet combine and interact.Information technology is now making a global impact on how Muslims approach and interpret Islam. Given its utilization as a primary source of information, the internet also influences how non-Muslims perceive Islam and matters relating to Muslims. Among the issues addressed are: how multimedia applications are being integrated into websites, enabling surfers to listen to and see ‘sermons’ delivered thousands of miles away and to partake of new opportunities for religious experience; how Muslim organizations are networking globally through the electronic medium, and how that impacts upon understanding of Islam and Muslim identities; how can Muslims and non-Muslims approach the Qur’an in its digital form; how the internet is used to present diverse dialogues relating to Islam, often reaching wide audiences where other forms of communication are heavily censored.