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Rigby
A starting point and a recent event, which has exposed an undercurrent of racial and religious tension within the UK, was the murder of Lee Rigby. In order to look at ‘The representation of Islam in British tabloids following the death of lee Rigby’. The following research aims were developed;

1. What are islamaphobia and orientalism and how are they relevant in todays society?
2. What discourse do tabloids use in order to describe Muslims (following the death of Lee Rigby).
3. What affect does the representation of Islam by the British tabloids have on society?

This thesis will explore the representation of Islam in four key tabloid newspapers, which shall consist of The Sun The Mirror, The Daily Express and The Daily Mail. This piece of
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The research analysis representations of discourse cited within tabloid texts. For example “”hate preacher” and “veil”. Baker applies the findings to events such as 9/11 and 7/7 in order to explore the affects that they had on press reporting. Chapter 3 in Baker (2013) is also resourceful as it explores the differences in the representation of Islam between different newspapers.

This thesis will explore how media representation has evolved since the 9/11 attacks as many academics argue that this was the starting point for anti-Islamic propaganda. Sherdian (2006) argues the impact that media representation has had on ethnic minorities, in particular Muslims. Sheridan uses real life application of the 9/11 attacks and the impact that was had on Muslims because of it. Therefore, Sheridan’s research will assist in answering the research question “what is the general representation of Islam in British
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A chapter in Reporting Islam that is particularly applicable to the thesis title is the chapter “representing Islam; in theory and in practice”. Which aims to understand and analyse the representations of Islam portrayed by British news media outlets, with a focus on the socio-political circumstances which “are driving the negativization of Islam”. Poole critically examines the global effects that coexist, leading to ethnic minorities feeling “isolated by host communities”. This will assist in answering the research question number three. (What affect does the representation of Islam by the British tabloids have on

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