Washington, D.C. — Three years ago, the Center for American Progress published a groundbreaking report exposing a tightly linked network of organizations, scholars, pundits, and activists that spread misinformation and hateful propaganda about American Muslims and Islam itself. The report, “Fear Inc.: The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America,” shined a light for the first time on concerted anti-Muslim fear-mongering efforts and the organizations and individuals funding these activities.
Today, CAP has released a follow-up report and website showing that while many members of the Islamophobia network have been marginalized, a number of these misinformation experts still disproportionately influence public policy and policymakers. The effects of this have seeped into international opinions on Islamophobia in the United States, some law-enforcement practices, and the pernicious fear-baiting that is evident with the introduction of anti-Sharia legislation.
“The first Fear, Inc. report exposed the small but extremely well-funded organizations and individuals who were driving the anti-Islam message through the echo chamber and by promoting policies that were based solely on fear and misinformation,” said Ken Gude, Senior Fellow and co-author of the report. “This report shows that while the first effort did a great deal of good in combating these practices and marginalizing these propaganda campaigns, there are still more organizations and individuals spending money to misinform the public and push a radical anti-Muslim agenda. We have also seen a stronger and better organized network of Americans from all sectors of society pushing back on this hateful message. Both sides of this struggle were evident in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing. With this report, we hope to bring to light the misdeeds of these well-funded few and counteract the fear and misinformation they insist on spreading.”
This report examines several key elements of the Islamophobia network, including:
- The civilization jihad narrative and theories of Muslim Brotherhood infiltration of the U.S. government
- The Islamophobia network’s influence among the religious right and faith groups combating anti-Muslim sentiment
- The impact of the Islamophobia network on law-enforcement training
- The response to the Boston Marathon bombing and the narrative of Islamic extremism
- Politically motivated Islamophobia and pushback by mainstream conservatives
Click here to read the report.
Click here for the website.
For more information, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.