The Impact of Social Media in Reshaping Religious Identities in Post-Revolutionary Tunisia

ABSTRACT: This paper examines the impact of social media in reshaping religious identity within both real and virtual public spaces of post-revolutionary Tunisia, particularly through the dissemination of Islamic dress codes such as the niqâb, qâmis, and Afghan outfit. It argues that social media platforms, primarily Facebook, provided fundamentalist groups – who had previously been marginalized within Tunisian society – with a space to express their religious beliefs and craft an online identity that reflected their ideology. These platforms facilitated their efforts to reislamize society, resulting in new tensions, particularly between different social actors.