News media literacy as a bridge: Alleviating antisemitic attitudes among Muslims facing discrimination

We address the relationship between negative news media coverage of Islam and antisemitic attitudes among Muslims as an indicator of cognitive Islamist radicalization. Conceptually grounded in Social Identity Theory and the concept of intergroup competitive victimhood, the study investigates the effects of exposure to negative news media coverage of Muslims and Islam on Muslims living in Germany ( N = 96). While exposure to negative news does not increase Muslims’ perceptions of discrimination, it does strengthen the association between perceived discrimination and antisemitic attitudes. The findings indicate that this problematic link can be mitigated by news media literacy, highlighting the importance of such literacy as a resource to protect members of religious minorities from the negative effects caused by exposure to negative news portrayals of their religion. Explanations for these findings are discussed.