@book {122, title = {Islam in the Digital Age: E-jihad, Online Fatwas and Cyber Islamic Environments}, year = {2003}, publisher = {Pluto Press}, organization = {Pluto Press}, address = {London}, abstract = {The Internet is very big in the Arab world. After Al-Jazeera, it is the second most important source of dissenting opinion. Literally, millions of people in the Muslim world rely on web-sites to get their information and fatwas. A whole new life of cyber Imams and a new culture is emerging through Internet programmes and will have a profound effect on Arab consciousness. This book documents all this and examines various sites and offers the first comprehensive analysis of the impact of the Internet on Islamic culture. Zia Sardar, author of Postmodernism and the Other and Why Do People Hate America. The Internet is an increasingly important source of information for many people in the Muslim world. Many Muslims in majority and minority contexts rely on the Internet -- including websites and e-mail -- as a primary source of news, information and communication about Islam. As a result, a new media culture is emerging which is having a significant impact on areas of global Muslim consciousness. Post-September 11th, this phenomenon has grown more rapidly than ever.Gary R. Bunt provides a fascinating account of the issues at stake, identifying two radical new concepts: Firstly, the emergence of e-jihad ({\textquoteright}Electronic Jihad{\textquoteright}) originating from diverse Muslim perspectives -- this is described in its many forms relating to the different definitions of {\textquoteright}jihad{\textquoteright}, including on-line activism (ranging from promoting militaristic activities to hacking, to co-ordinating peaceful protests) and Muslim expression post 9/11. Secondly, he discusses religious authority on the Internet -- including the concept of on-line fatwas and their influence in diverse settings, and the complexities of conflicting notions of religious authority.}, keywords = {cyber, Digital, fatwas, Islam, jihad}, author = {Gary Bunt} } @book {111, title = {Virtually Islamic: Computer-Mediated Communication and Cyber Islamic Environments}, year = {2000}, publisher = {University of Wales Press}, organization = {University of Wales Press}, address = {Lampeter, Wales}, author = {Gary Bunt} } @book {248, title = {IMuslims: Rewiring the House of Islam}, year = {2009}, publisher = {UNC Press}, organization = {UNC Press}, address = {Chapel Hill, NC}, abstract = {Exploring the increasing impact of the Internet on Muslims around the world, this book sheds new light on the nature of contemporary Islamic discourse, identity, and community. The Internet has profoundly shaped how both Muslims and non-Muslims perceive Islam and how Islamic societies and networks are evolving and shifting in the twenty-first century, says Gary Bunt. While Islamic society has deep historical patterns of global exchange, the Internet has transformed how many Muslims practice the duties and rituals of Islam. A place of religious instruction may exist solely in the virtual world, for example, or a community may gather only online. Drawing on more than a decade of online research, Bunt shows how social-networking sites, blogs, and other "cyber-Islamic environments" have exposed Muslims to new influences outside the traditional spheres of Islamic knowledge and authority. Furthermore, the Internet has dramatically influenced forms of Islamic activism and radicalization, including jihad-oriented campaigns by networks such as al-Qaeda. By surveying the broad spectrum of approaches used to present dimensions of Islamic social, spiritual, and political life on the Internet, iMuslimsencourages diverse understandings of online Islam and of Islam generally.}, keywords = {information and communication technology, Islam, social networks, study of religion}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?id=qIbwHwTYqqcC\&printsec=frontcover$\#$v=onepage\&q\&f=false}, author = {Gary Bunt} } @inbook {218, title = {Rip.Burn.Pray: Islamic Expression Online}, booktitle = {Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet}, year = {2004}, pages = {123-134}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, address = {New York}, abstract = {After sex, religion is one of the most popular and pervasive topics of interest online, with over three million Americans turning to the internet each day for religious information and spiritual guidance. Tens of thousands of elaborate websites are dedicated to every manner of expression.Religion Onlineprovides an accessible and comprehensive introduction to this burgeoning new religious reality, from cyberpilgrimages to neo-pagan chatroom communities. A substantial introduction by the editors presenting the main themes and issues is followed by sixteen chapters addressing core issues of concern such as youth, religion and the internet, new religious movements and recruitment, propaganda and the countercult, and religious tradition and innovation. The volume also includes thePew Internet and American Life ProjectExecutiveSummary, the most comprehensive and widely cited study on how Americans pursue religion online, and Steven O{\textquoteright}Leary{\textquoteright}s field-definingCyberspace as SacredSpace.}, keywords = {Islam, Online, Prayer}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?id=xy0PJrrWXH4C\&printsec=frontcover$\#$v=onepage\&q\&f=false}, author = {Gary Bunt} }