Abstract
New Media and the Mediatisation of Religion, a collection of articles, edited by Gabriel Faimau and William O Lesitaokana, analyzes the impact of social media among various religious groups in Africa. Many of the articles address how technology accelerates the spread of religion, transforms religious authority, and allows for the development of new forms of religious community and identity. The authors primarily use content or discourse analysis in their research, although in a few cases they cite interview data.
The first chapter of this book, based on fieldwork conducted in Botswana among prophetic ministries, examines ‘how new media plays a role in framing and articulating various prophetic discourses and activism’ (p. 12), and reveals how leaders position themselves as ‘credible, authoritative prophetic voices’ (p. 29). This study also shows how social media may be used for activism, although, in this case, religious leaders redirected social concerns toward overcoming spiritual challenges.
Chapter 2 ‘examines the mediating effect of the rise of social media on different forms of interaction among Christians in Zimbabwe’ (p. 32). This study shows how the availability of media allows religious individuals to practice their faith without being physically present in churches. In addition, these types of media promote ‘religious surfing,’ by making content from diverse religious traditions available, challenging the distinctions between denominations. However, as the author states, ‘cyber religiosity functions as a mechanism for building both authentic and imagined social solidarity’ (p. 44).
Chapter 3 explores how prophetic ministries use social media to facilitate communication among members and leaders, promote visibility, and to create narratives regarding the authority and importance of the prophets. Using online content analysis, the researcher examines themes and patterns connected with media and religion in Botswana. Similar to the previous chapter, the author describes how new media challenge the idea of religious space by allowing members to participate virtually.
In Chapter 4 the author examines Facebook data from three churches: ECG Youth Ministry, the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa, and Catholic Diocese Gaborone. While this research shows that each group uses social media to share events and information, the author suggests that members primarily participate in online groups to express their religious identity. That is, identifying one’s religious affiliation online functioned much like a ‘bumper sticker,’ a label directed to non-members and religious outsiders, working also to develop religious identity. While the author makes important observations, this reviewer suggests that the assumptions regarding the online users’ religious motivation should be verified using additional interview data.
Drawing from interviews with church members in Gaborone, Botswana, Chapter 5 examines how social media are used to transcend denominational boundaries and doctrinal distinction. As the author states, ‘The use of social media for Christian practice . . . allows the individual to pick and choose doctrines that appeal to him/her’ (p. 91). The concept of ‘e-Christianity,’ developed in this study, draws attention to a new form of ecumenism today, and a new presentation of religious identity. Rather than traditional ecumenism that brings diverse denominations together, often physically, e-Christianity allows individuals to selectively bring together disparate religious ideas and practices in private online devotion. Finally, the author suggests that contemporary religion in Africa often manifests itself in the consumeristic practices commonly associated with postmodernity.
In Chapter 6, the researchers conducted digital ethnography, analyzing the Facebook page of ‘Prophet Cedric Ministries,’ located in Botswana. The authors found that this religious group exercised rhetorical power through enhancing the leader’s authority, cultivating religious identity, developing a ‘virtual religious community,’ and the ‘expansion of religious product attachment’ (p. 117). Social media, these authors argue, provide a platform on which religious leaders can orchestrate the formation of a virtual community and promote their organization, while simultaneously providing religious users with a resource for constructing an identity.
Examining three Nigerian religious organizations’ Facebook pages, Chapter 7 discusses how social media allow for a new form of religiosity through ‘likes and shares,’ and (similar to findings in the preceding chapters) establishes the prophets’ authority and influence over a hybrid physical/virtual community. Online religion seems to provide advantages to both leaders and followers by making the practice of religion quite flexible and accessible.
The author of Chapter 8 explores how social media have been used to ‘reinforce gender stereotypes by promoting patriarchal religious rhetoric’ (p. 140). This research shows how a political movement in Malawi spread through social media and capitalized on sexist religious sentiments among the population to secure power. Adopting Bourdieu’s concept of symbolic power, the author suggests that citizens participated in their own suppression by failing to recognize the biases of their ideology. Citing the importance of media in this process, this research raises serious questions about the neutrality of technology.
Shifting the focus to Islam, the final chapter examines how Boko Haram uses social media. The author examines this extremist group’s historical development, its use of social media to spread radical ideologies, and how various discourses and media representations strengthen or weaken its appeal. The author recommends journalistic and media strategies for representing this group that avoid repackaging ‘insurgence as an alluring counterpoint to the national socio-economic malaise’ (p. 172).
This collection of articles makes an important contribution to the sociological study of media and religion. Furthermore, by addressing the religion/technology nexus within the African context, this volume is an important resource for scholars analyzing the cross-cultural manifestations of new forms of mediated religion. Although raising important questions about the role of media in religious movements, this volume could have been improved by drawing more from interviews and/or ethnographic studies. While content analysis provides a useful methodological approach, attributing motivation and intention to users can be problematic. However, acknowledging this limitation, the current volume provides an insightful look into complicated and interrelated manifestations of religion, culture, and technology in Africa.