Global Networks, Local Concerns: Investigating the Impact of Emerging Technologies on Shi‘i Religious Leaders and Constituencies
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Authors
Riggs, Robert J.
Issue Date
2017-03-24
Type
Presentation
Language
en_US
Keywords
Media technology , Religion , Transmediation
Alternative Title
Abstract
Throughout history religious traditions have had to be translated (or “transmediated”) for new generations in changing contexts of communication. Religion, “cannot be analyzed outside the forms and practices of mediation that define it”. It then becomes paramount to explore how the transition from one mode of mediated communication to another contributes to reconfiguring a particular religious practice. The focus should be on the cultural practices of mediation rather than on the media themselves. However, the extent to which media technologies are driving forces in transformations of Shi‘i religious institutions is a key focus in this paper.