Summary Of The Documentary 'My Week As A Muslim'

The Guardian, a British news source both on paper and online shares an article that the Muslim Council of Britain has deemed the documentary “My Week as a Muslim” aired on Channel 4 was a prime example of racism and stereotype against the Muslim community rather than the thought-provoking educational piece it was intended to be.
Through reading the article and personally watching the 40-minute long documentary, it becomes clear that it sheds clear connection drawn on various theories on religion and media, particularly focusing on the idea that with a documentary such as this, the traditions, culture, and frameworks of a religion are exposed to a wider audience that otherwise would not have the opportunity to get a glimpse into the life of …show more content…
“The whole point of sourcing and the practice of reporting involve documenting what the reporter can see and verify for himself or herself. Again, while all religions have observable and tangible elements they can always reserve from view something that many would claim is the core of what they are” (Winston, 2012). Referring to this quote by Winston, the process of darkening her skin and applying prosthetic features to resemble that more closely to a Muslim woman was not to offend of portray “brown-face” but was to document what not only was seen, but, what could be experienced in first-person, broken down, and publicly shown for what it was. Critics argue then, “Why could you not have just documented the day of a real Muslim woman?”, I argue that media needs to constantly shift and this is when the need to step outside the box and make steps towards unusual forms of documenting news and religion to grab the attention of people that would otherwise show no