Today Altmuslimah is excited to invite you to participate in an unprecedented online event and audio seminar happening this May and which we’re a proud partner in. It’s called The Future of Islam In the Age of New Media and it features 60 speakers in 60 seconds each for a total of 60 insightful minutes. Billed as “the shortest conference on Islam ever,” it brings together many names and faces you’ll recognize including Asma Uddin, Reza Aslan, Jillian C. York, Abdullahi An-Na’im and many others.
We’ve all seen the power of digital media and how it played a key role in the recent uprisings that toppled the Tunisian and Egyptian dictators. And while there has been a lot of talk on that subject, there has hardly been any discussion on perhaps an even more important topic, and that is the impact of new media on Islam.
Islam permeates all aspects of Muslim life including education and politics. Therefore, any evolution and new trends that emerge within Islam and Islamic thought, even in cyberspace, have the potential to influence important matters beyond Islam itself.
This isn’t theory. It’s factual and it’s already happening.
As Gary R. Bunt, a leading researcher and one of the featured speakers rightly observes and states in his book iMuslims: Rewiring the House of Islam, “The Internet has a profound contemporary impact on how Muslims perceive Islam and how Islamic societies and networks are evolving and shifting in the twenty-first century.”
How and in what ways this is happening is precisely what will be explored by the 60 speakers comprised of Islamic scholars, new media experts, academics, journalists and activists.
However, we want to hear from YOU as well so join us along with thousands of participants who will be tuning in and contributing to the conversation in the blogosphere and on Twitter using the hashtag #IslamNewMedia. You also have the chance to get featured as a speaker in the audio seminar too. Find out how you might be able to right here, and learn more about the details of the event here.
We look forward to a rich and engaging conversation.
Amir Ahmad is the organizer of the online event “Islam in the Age of New Media”
