Perception of Shari’a in Sydney and New York Newspapers

Drawing on methodologies used to analyse the negative portrayals of new religious movements in the press, this chapter analyzes the way Shari’a has been reported in key newspapers in Sydney and New York over the last 5 years. It differentiates between perceptions of Islamic law as practiced in these global cities, as well as in other foreign countries and examines the different levels of perception. The chapter also investigates portrayals and perceptions of ‘good’ Shari’a (i.e. Islamic banking) as opposed to ‘bad’ Shari’a (i.e. family and criminal law).