2024 – Page 35 – Virtually Islamic News

Mon 8 Ramadan 1445AH 18-3-2024AD
Books, Comic books, Iran

Marjane Satrapi

Angelique Chrisafis, The Guardian, ‘The little girl in Persepolis has grown up’: Marjane Satrapi on life after her hit graphic novel – and her radical new work. “As a...

Mon 8 Ramadan 1445AH 18-3-2024AD
Ramadan

Deutsche Welle, Influencer verändern den Ramadan, aber im Guten oder im Schlechten? “„[Influencers‘] „Die Einbeziehung religiöser Themen kann von einer Diskussion über religiöse Praktiken bis hin zu Vorschlägen zum...

Thu 4 Ramadan 1445AH 14-3-2024AD
Gender, Podcasts, Ramadan

Podcast – ‘Muslim Women Talk Ramadan‘

‘Muslim Women Talk Ramadan‘ is a new podcast from Shelina Janmohamed. You can check it out here.

Thu 4 Ramadan 1445AH 14-3-2024AD
Academia, Digital British Islam, Ramadan, Research

Ramadan Online Activity

Here’s what I have been up to today:

Thu 4 Ramadan 1445AH 14-3-2024AD
Central Africa, East Africa, South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, West Africa

Africa Net Outage

These figures do not look good. “… multiple subsea cable failures.”

Wed 3 Ramadan 1445AH 13-3-2024AD
Business, Influencers, MENA, Ramadan, ritual, UAE, UAE Digital

Ramadan ‘Influencers‘

Cathrin Schaer, Deutsche Welle, Ramadan: How are influencers changing the Muslim holiday?, 13 March 2024 “During Ramadan, influencers in the Middle East are more active on social media than...

Wed 3 Ramadan 1445AH 13-3-2024AD
Artificial Intelligence, Gender, robots, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia Internet

Coding Issues

Joshua Zitser, Business Insider, A ‘male’ humanoid robot was unveiled in Saudi Arabia. It then inappropriately touched a female reporter, 11 Mar 2024. “QSS, which did not immediately respond...

Tue 2 Ramadan 1445AH 12-3-2024AD
Artificial Intelligence, News, News Media

AI News Anchor

Arab News, Asharq News debuts AI anchor on air, 12 Mar 2024 “The AI version of the Saudi-based channel’s anchor can speak languages including Russian, Spanish and Mandarin during...

Tue 2 Ramadan 1445AH 12-3-2024AD
Censorship, Egypt Internet, Egypt,

Sandvine on Entity List

I’m slightly late to this article: Peter Guest, Wired UK, Dictators Used Sandvine Tech to Censor the Internet. The US Finally Did Something About It, 28 Feb 2024 “On...

Tue 2 Ramadan 1445AH 12-3-2024AD
Academia, Architecture, Art, Podcasts, Research

Jonathon Bloom Podcast

Professor Bloom discusses ‘Paper before Print‘ (a classic) and other work in the Afikra podcast:

Islamic Algorithms – book cover

Gary R. Bunt, Islamic Algorithms: Online Influence in the Muslim Metaverse (London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2024)

Explore the book

Paperback, hardback and ebook editions are available now.

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Prof. Gary R. Bunt, 2026

Comments

“Gary Bunt’s Islamic Algorithms explores the dynamic relationship between technology shifts and the evolving engagement of Muslims online. Bunt emphasises the unchanging core of Islam, adapting its expression to developing technology. A testament to Bunt’s brilliance in the ever-changing Cyber Islamic Environments, this is a must-read for those interested in Islamic studies, digital Islam and Muslim metaverses.” ―Eva Nisa, Senior Lecturer of Anthropology, The Australian National University, Australia

“A timely and insightful exploration, the book offers a concise yet comprehensive glimpse into the evolving landscape of Cyber Islamic Environments. From the serene halls of Jakarta’s Istiqlal Mosque to the potential realms of Muslim metaverses, this book takes readers on a journey to unveil the dynamic relationship between Islam and technology. In a world where smartphones guide prayers and iPads connect elders in study groups, Bunt shares a compelling and timely perspective on the evolving relationship between Islam, technology and the digital age.” ―Umar Ryad, Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Leuven, Belgium

Bibliography and Glossary

Review by Michael Dhanoya (University of Leicester) in LSE Blogs

“Islamic Algorithms is a great contribution to the topic of Digital Religion …”

Review in The Muslim World‘ by Dr Akif Tahiiev of Goethe-Universitat Frankfurt am Main

‘Gary R. Bunts Islamic Algorithms liefert detaillierte Einblicke in die digitalen Räume von AkteurInnen, die sich auf unterschiedliche Weise auf den Islam “

“Gary R. Bunt’s Islamic Algorithms provides detailed insights into the digital spaces of actors who relate to Islam in various ways.*

* Google Translation

Margareta Wetchy, Gary R. Bunts Islamic Algorithms unter der Lupe, Machine Against the Rage

“Overall, Islamic Algorithms: Online Influence in the Muslim Metaverse is crucial to contemporary Islamic studies. The book is highly recommended for researchers, academics, and practitioners interested in the interaction between
technology and religion.” Reza Adeputra Tohis and Zulkifli Mansyur, Religion & Theology, 32 (2025): Issue 1-2 (Jun 2025) [PDF]

” … Bunt’s volume is an important step forward in understanding the importance of digital discourse to contemporary Islamic traditions and Muslim communities.” James Riggan, Reading Religion (American Academy of Religion)

“Islamic Algorithms provides a timely and thoughtful examination of how Islam, algorithms, and digital culture intersect. It is a valuable resource for scholars and researchers interested in digital presence of Islam, and digital culture both in theory and practice.” Mohamed Taher, Middle Eastern Librarians Association

Book cover: Dijital Dünyada Müslüman Olmak: Mecra, Kimlik ve Otorite‘

Gary R. Bunt’s chapter ‘Şeyh Google’dan Yapay Zekâ İmama Mı?: Müslüman Dijital Mecralarda İslami Etki ve Otoritenin Dönüşümü‘?‘ (trans. Necmiye Durmuş) is available in ‘Dijital Dünyada Müslüman Olmak: Mecra, Kimlik ve Otorite‘ edited by Mehmet Ali Başak (Eskiyeni). The original version was in

Scharia im Wandel edited by Mahmud El-Wereny and Alexander-Kenneth Nagel. (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2024).

Available from:

AI ‘Fake Journalism‘ Fri 28 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 9-10-2026AD

Starlink Test Implications Fri 28 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 9-10-2026AD

Virtually Islamic on Substack Fri 28 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 9-10-2026AD

Iran AI Fri 28 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 9-10-2026AD

Indonesia Online Gambling Thu 27 Rabi Al Thani 1448AH 8-10-2026AD

Scharia im Wandel book cover. Showing figures reading, a stack of books, and the background of a minaret and mosque dome.

My chapter, “From Sheikh Google to ImamAI? Evolving Islamic Influence and Authority in Muslim Digital Worlds,” is published in “Scharia im Wandel. Beiträge zur Transformation islamischer Autorität im Spannungsfeld von Kodifikation, Migration und Digitalisierung,” edited by Mahmud El-Wereny and Alexander-Kenneth Nagel. (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2024). Studies on Islamic Cultural and Intellectual History, Noorhaidi Hasan et al.

The book is the result of a 2022 conference at Georg-August-Universität Göttingen.

A Turkish version of the chapter is in preparation for publication in 2026.

Ramadan 1445
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
« Sha				Shw »
	1	2	3	4	5	6
7	8	9	10	11	12	13
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27
28	29	30