BENMSIK FACULTY OF LETTERS AND HUMANITIES

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
MOROCCAN-AMERICAN STUDIES
MASTER PROGRAM

Content Analysis of American Print Media Coverage

of Moroccan Political Islam from 2011 to 2017

S4 Term Paper

By: Zineb Boukar Supervisor: Dr. Mohamed El-Amine Moumine

July 2017
Abstract

This research paper examines three elite daily American newspapers coverage of political

Islam in Morocco from 2011 to 2017. A content analysis approach has been adopted in the

analysis of the newspaper articles. Quantitative content analysis has provided quantitative

findings by counting parts of speech qualifying Islamism in Morocco, whereas qualitative

analysis has inferred latent content by relating the quantitative findings to the adopted

variables, which are the most covered issues and the newspapers’ editorial line. The findings

have revealed an overall positive attitude towards political Islam in Morocco. However, there

are clear differences between Conservative and Liberal newspapers.

Key words: Political Islam, Islamism, representation, content analysis, Morocco.

2
 Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures…………………………………………………………………….4

List of Abbreviations………………………………………………………………………….5

1. Introduction………….….………….……………………………………..……………….6
1.1. Purpose ………………………………………….…………………………………….8
1.2. Rationale ………………………………………………………………………………8
1.3. Research Questions and Hypotheses …………..…….………………………………..9
1.4. Scope ……………………………………………………………………………...….10

2. Review of the Literature…………….....…………………………………..……..………12

2.1. Political Islam……………………………………………………..………………….12

2.2. Media Representation and Framing…………………..…………………...…………..15
2.3. Political Islam in Morocco……………………………...……………………………18
3. Theoretical Framework………………………………………………...………….………..22
3.1. Content Analysis ……………..........………………………………………………….22
3.2. Quantitative and Qualitative Content Analyses……...………………………....……..24
3.3. Case Studies………………………….…………………………………………...........26

4. Methodology…….………...………………………….…………………………...…....….30
4.1. Data Collection………………………………………………………………………..30
4.2. Data Classification………………………………………………………………….…33
4.2.1. Classification by Editorial Line……………………………………………………..33
4.2.2. Classification by Top Issues ………………………………………………………..35

4.3. Data Analysis Methods……………………………………………………………..….....33

5. Findings……………………………………………………………………………..…...…39

5.1. Covered Issues ……………………………………………......……………….….…..39

5.2. Major Issues in Conservative and Liberal newspapers …………...………....…......…43
5.3. Attitudes Distribution ………………………...…………………………………..…...44

5.3.1. Prevailing Attitudes in the Total Sixty Articles …………………………………….45

5.3.2. Prevailing Attitudes in Liberal Newspapers …………...………..….....……..…..…47
5.3.3. Prevailing Attitudes in Conservative Newspapers ………...……………..….……...51

6. Findings’ Interpretation ……………………………………………………………..….…53

7. Conclusion……………………………..……..……………..……....….…………...……..55
References ………………………………………………………………..……………..……58
Appendices …………………………………………………………..………………..….…..61

3
 List of Tables and Figures

Table 4.1. Top Ten Daily American Newspapers by Circulation

Table 4.2. Number of Articles by Newspaper

Table 4.3. Information of Each Selected Newspaper

Table 5.1. Number of Articles Dealing with Each Issue

Table 5.2. Nouns’ Frequency in the Total 60 Articles

Table 5.3. Positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in 60 Articles

Table 5.4. Positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in Liberal Newspapers

Table 5.5. Positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in the Conservative Newspaper

Figure 5.1. Distribution of the Main Issues in Liberal and Conservative Newspapers

Figure 5.2. Distribution of Articles According to Revealed Attitudes

Figure 5.3. Distribution of Attitudes in Liberal Newspapers

Figure 5.4. Distribution of Attitudes in Conservative Newspapers

4
 List of Abbreviations

ABC Audit Bureau of Circulation

Adj. Adjectives

Art. Articles

Freq. Frequency

JS Justice and Spirituality

MRR Movement of Reform and Renewal

PJD The Party of Justice and Development

POS Parts of speech

5
1. Introduction

Across the Islamic world, Islamist groups have chosen to join protests stemming from

the 2011 Arab Spring. In Morocco, however, an exception emerged. The country’s main

Islamist political party – the Justice and Development Party – has chosen not to join protests

organised by the 20 February movement for change. Such an incident might be considered a

unique feature of Islamism in Morocco, which differs from its counterpart in other Arab

countries.

This paper examines the way the main American newspapers have represented political

Islam in Morocco in the last six years. The focus is on the three key components of Islamism

which are the religious, political and social fields to decide on the most tackled components

and why there is an emphasis on that peculiar area of interest. The classification of the

newspaper articles in terms of Liberal and Conservative offers the potential of comparing the

two distinct editorial lines. On the one hand, quantitative content analysis reveals the stance of

each category. Qualitative content analysis, on the other hand, infers and interprets the

dominant attitudes of both Liberal and Conservative articles towards Islamism in Morocco.

The initial section of this paper presents the review of the literature. First, an overview

of political Islam is offered along with meticulous definitions which attempt to define and

limit such complex and debated phenomenon. Second, a brief account on representation and

media constructions is provided. Third, an overview of political Islam in Morocco is

presented. This part sheds light on the history of Islamism in Morocco, its nature and how

different it is from the rest of Arab countries.

6
 The second section presents the theoretical framework of the study, which defines and

reviews the literature on the adopted content analysis approach, and discloses examples of

three case studies using this research method to analyse newspaper articles’ content. The

reviewed case studies are the following: Halisatu Aziz (2015), Indraja Gugle (2016), and

Naureen Aqueel (2015).

The third section, methodology, displays the major implemented data collection,

classification, coding, analysis and interpretation processes. First, this section alludes to the

determined criteria of data collection which comprise articles on the topic of Islamism in

Morocco in three of the most circulated American newspapers. The classification of the

newspaper articles abides by the following prime variables: most covered issues and

newspapers’ editorial line. It is also explained in the methodology section that content

analysis is the chief adopted method in the study and KH Coder is the used software program

which code and quantify words’ recurrence.

The fourth section sorts out the main findings which are presented throughout this part.

To inquire the dominant issues and attitudes of the chosen newspapers, the articles are

categorised according to the most tackled issues and the editorial line of each newspaper;

Conservative and Liberal. Differences across these two groups are discussed according to the

prevailing attitude of each editorial line. Other contexts are made use of to interpret the main

findings.

To conclude, this study endeavours to expose how Islamism in Morocco is represented

in the following newspapers: The New York Times, The Washington Post, and USA Today.

7
The data analysis also helps inspecting the attitude of each editorial line which may influence

the nature of the coverage and determine the most covered issues.

This paper is an attempt to contribute to the existing literature on Moroccan Islamism.

The examination of three major American newspapers reveals a foreign stance about political

Islam in Morocco. The significance of choosing American newspapers; which have high

number of circulation and readership, resides in their vital role in shaping public opinion not

only in America, but in various countries from all corners of the world.

1.1. Purpose

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine how Moroccan political Islam is

represented in three of the most circulated American daily newspapers. The academic goal of

this study is twofold: the first aim is to look at the way Moroccan Political Islam is

represented in three of the elite American newspapers, and better understand the effect of such

representations. The second aim lies in delineating the main differences and similarities

between Conservative and Liberal newspapers in covering Islamism in Morocco.

1.2. Rationale

Political Islam in the Middle East and the MENA Region is one of the key concerns of

America’s foreign policy. Focusing on the case of Morocco, Moroccan Islamists have proven

resilient in the wake of the Arab Spring and have offered a different model of Islamist

participation that partly reflects the country’s unique monarchical context. The Brotherhood-

inspired Justice and Development Party (PJD) has secured a foothold in government through

an accommodationist posture towards Morocco’s monarchy, while the anti-monarchical

popular movement Al Adl Wal Ihsan has sustained its appeal and access through non-violent

8
activism. In this context, this research study investigates how Moroccan political Islam is

represented in American print media. The prime objective of this study is to inquire the

attitudes and tone of both Conservative and Liberal newspapers. I think this research topic is

relevant in the sense that it contributes to the existing literature on Morocco. Being an

international outlet, the most circulated American print media plays a great role in modeling

public opinion and affecting the decision-making process. In this regard, this study is worth

inspecting because it may provide background knowledge to future researchers and policy

makers on the stance of the selected print media towards political Islam in Morocco.

1.3. Research Questions and Hypotheses

This study is concerned with the representation of Moroccan political Islam in the

following American newspapers: The New York Times, The Washington Post, and USA

Today. Political Islam had tremendous effects on the American newspapers dealing with the

coverage of the issue, yet their attitudes and stance vary in consistency.

While several newspapers adopted a negative attitude towards Islamism in various Arab and

Islamic countries, others hailed the unique nature of Islamism in certain countries. Various

media campaigns were launched predominantly by Western media companies, these

campaigns consisted of an attempt to frame a rough picture of Islamism to their public. At the

same time, newspapers and media channels owned by Muslim countries and groups attempted

to illustrate what they believed to be the true image of Islamism. This discrepancy and

difference in viewpoints came to be more evident in the war the United States launched

against Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003 in what it called the ‘War on terrorism’.

In the light of this argument, this study addresses the following key research questions:

1) How is Moroccan political Islam represented in the three selected American newspapers?

9
2) What are the most covered issues which dominated the selected data during the period from

2011 to 2017?

3) Which attitudes did the chosen American newspapers hold towards Islamism in Morocco?

This question is concerned with identifying the attitudes of the selected newspapers from the

beginning of the Arab Spring until 2017. More importantly this question inquires whether

they are for or against Islamism in Morocco. The study also investigates whether there is a

difference in terms of attitudes and tone between Conservative and Liberal newspapers.

Last but not least, this study assumes that there will be some clear distinctions among the two

editorial lines, i.e. Conservative and Liberal, in terms of attitudes as well as the issues of

interest of each category.

1.4. Scope

The scope of this thesis is to investigate how political Islam in Morocco is represented in

three elite American newspapers. It considers some related fields to Islamism like the

religious and socio-political domains. This thesis bases its discussion and analysis on the

findings from the sixty chosen newspaper articles. In an attempt to study the media coverage

of political Islam in Morocco, a quantitative and qualitative content analysis of the data is

adopted. Like any other research paper, this study has its own limitations that need to be

addressed. First, this thesis does not display a thorough analysis of all American newspapers

because, as it has been noticed, the focus is more on newspaper categories, i.e. Conservative

and Liberal. Second, despite the well-defined criteria of data selection, it is difficult to claim

the coverage of all newspapers’ archives. According to Babbie (2010), “regardless of your

data-collection method, you will frequently face the problem of missing data”.

10
As a matter of fact, when there is a wider selection of articles and sources, it is easier to draw

generalizations from the selection. Nevertheless, more research into the stance of the

American administration towards the religious and socio-political transformations in Morocco

would offer a chance for comparing the two distinct fields of media and the American

administration.

11
2. Review of the Literature

This section offers an overview of political Islam in Morocco and shows how distinctive

it is from the rest of Arab countries. By the same token, it provides a brief account of Political

Islam in Morocco and how distinctive it is from the rest of Islamic countries. Additionally,

this section defines the content analysis approach used in the current paper. Certain significant

definitions are presented and examined in succession. Three relatable case studies are

reviewed and their relevance stems from the use of an analogous approach which is applied to

a parallel theme. These case studies analyse American newspapers and a fourth case study

analyses Asian newspaper; they all take into consideration the effect of newspaper coverage

on a particular issue.

2.1. Political Islam

Over the past few decades, Islam has turned out to be the key element of reference for

various political activities and movements. The landscape of the Muslim world today reveals

an Islamic resurgence marked with an unprecedented ascendency of Islamism in numerous

countries from North Africa to Southeast Asia. Political Islam, also known as Islamism, is a

relatively recent phenomenon which developed in the last two centuries of Islam’s 1400 year

history. According to The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Politics, “political Islam

represents a form of social and political activism, grounded in an idea that public and political

life should be guided by a set of Islamic principles.” This very definition presents a literal,

straightforward description of the concept, yet political Islam is a much more complex issue

which has raised many questions and generated a hot debate among scholars, policymakers,

governments and students of international politics alike. These questions, indeed, revolve

around the implications of Islamism on diversity, minorities and women’s rights, the extent to

12
which Islamism, democracy and modernity are compatible or not, and Islamism being a

potential threat to the West. Looking at it from one side, adherents of Islamism believe that

“Islamism as a body of faith has something important to say about how politics and society

should be ordered in the contemporary Muslim world and implemented in some fashion.”1

In this regard, Islamism is seen as a pragmatic ideology, which is part and parcel of the

political decision-making process. A more analytic definition of political Islam illustrates it as

“a form of instrumentalisation of Islam by individuals, groups and organizations that pursue

political objectives. It provides political responses to today’s societal challenges by imagining

a future, the foundations for which rest on re-appropriated, reinvented concepts borrowed

from the Islamic tradition.”2

Looking at it from the other side, critics of Islamism hold a set of assumptions on the

phenomenon of political Islam, which drive them to reject it. In his book entitled The Many

Faces of Political Islam, Mohammed Ayoub (2008) sums up the predominant assumptions in

the literature dealing with the analysis of political Islam which he divides into six major

statements. To put it in Ayoub’s exact terms:

(a)There is something unique in Islam that precludes separation

between religion and state, and that religion dictates political action
in Muslim countries. (b) Political Islam like Islam itself is a
monolithic phenomenon and, therefore, by definition a universal or
transnational occurrence largely independent of particular social and
political contexts in which Islamist groups and parties operate. (c)
Islamists are single-minded fanatics who are obsessed with
implementing the sharia and enforcing God’s sovereignty and are,
therefore, incapable of making political compromises or building
coalitions with other political forces/ parties. (d) Islamist political
formations are by definition anti-democratic because belief in
God’s sovereignty precludes accepting the notion of popular
sovereignty; at best they are likely to use democracy in an

1
Graham Fuller, The Future of Political Islam. Palgrave, New York, 2003, page xi.
2
Guilain Denoeux, “The Forgotten Swamp: Navigating Political Islam”, Middle East Policy, June 2002, p. 61.

13
 instrumentalist fashion to come to power, but once in power they
are likely to jettison the democratic system in order to perpetuate
their rule thus proving true the dictum that Islamists are committed
to “one person, one vote, one time”. (e) Political Islam is inherently
violent or, at the very least, predisposes its followers to undertake
unconstitutional and extra-legal activity to achieve their “divinely
sanctioned” objectives.

Ayoub (2008) asserts that such assumptions may seem valid academically speaking, yet they

still present a limited, mistaken reading of political Islam. In this context, he argues that the

interlacing of religion and politics is not exclusive to Islam. Judaism, Christianity, and

Hinduism have all incorporated religion into politics. In fact, tying religion and politics has

been more prominent in Christianity starting from the 4th century down through the medieval

period than was the case in Islam’s classical age. Ayoub also asserts that political Islam,

contrary to what is believed, is not monolithic. It comes, however, in numerous forms and

differs from country to country and even within countries as well. From Ayoub’s point of

view, Islamism’s popularity and legitimacy stem from the use of a jargon that makes sense to

the public and the authoritarian nature of regimes in power in the Muslim world.

By the same token, Graham Fuller (2003) perceives that the aspect of violence is a commonly

held attribute of political Islam. He elucidates that the events of September 11, 2001, the War

on Iraq and the conflict in Palestine have participated in linking political Islam to violence and

caused its identification as an essential enemy to the West. Fuller, however, illustrates that

political Islam does not necessarily entail violence, but rather its broad spectrum runs from

“radical to moderate, violent to peaceful, democratic to authoritarian, traditionalist to

modernist”.

14
 2.2. Media Representations

Media are one of the most influential disseminators of meaning which shape the way

we perceive ourselves and the world. As a matter of fact, mass media play a major role in

creating, instructing and distributing knowledge and ideologies. According to Van Dijk

(1991), “the stories and images in the Media provide resources and symbols through which we

organize ourselves into this culture” (p. 45). Several studies have proven true the power of

media in articulating prevalent social values and ideologies, which often lead to

misrepresentation or stereotypical portrayals. Being the basis of all media texts, representation

is one of the most debated notions in the field of cultural and media studies. Representation is

a complex, multi-faceted concept which embodies various meanings and interpretations. It is

the process whereby the media construct a different, distorted version of reality by resorting to

written, symbolic and technical codes. The Oxford dictionary provides two definitions of the

term representation:

1. To represent something is to describe or depict it, to call it up in the mind by

description or portrayal; to place a likeness of it before us in our mind.
2. To represent also means to symbolise, stand for, to be a specimen of or to
substitute for; as in the sentence, “In Christianity, the cross represents the
suffering and crucifixion of Christ.”

These straightforward definitions denote that the media’s main business is to describe

things to us by representing people, or issues so that we end up believing that we know what

they are like. According to the cultural theorist Stuart Hall, “Representation means using

language to say something meaningful about, or to represent, the world meaningfully, to other

people”. Hall (1997) believes that language is not merely restricted to a system of linguistic

signs, yet the non-linguistic signs — such as visual images, body language, and language of

the music and fashion —are also part and parcel of language and they do communicate a

given message.

15
 In this context, Hall alludes to two systems of representation which include both the

conceptual images in our mind and the linguistic signs. The former system of representation

relies on thoughts which may represent the world, objects, or abstract things; whereas the

second system is a medium through which our thoughts can be organized, represented and

exchanged. Thus, representation is the process whereby things, concepts and linguistic signs

are linked to produce a meaning.

In his seminal book entitled The Work of Representation, Hall delineates three

approaches to the study of representation: the reflective, intentional and constructionist

approach. According to the reflective approach, language, or any other emblematic system,

operates as a mega mirror which can reflect or distort reality, whereas the intentional approach

argues that “it is the speaker, the author, who imposes his or her unique meaning on the world

through language (Hall, 1997: 25). Thus, meaning in both the reflective and the intentional

approaches, is presumed to be static. Finally, the constructionist approach upholds that

meaning in language is constructed by using representational systems of codes and signs. In

this approach, the material world is considered the place where things and people exist and

signs are regarded as having a material dimension. However, it is within language systems

that meaning is constructed and produced and therefore meaning is produced through its

symbolic function not its material quality (1997: 26). As opposed to the former approaches,

the constructionist model sustains that there is no distinct, fixed, unanimous true meaning.

Meaning therefore is always on the move.

Because of the linguistic turn in Cultural Studies and Social Sciences, the

constructionist approach became the prevailing one. This shift had urged many theorists to

16
embrace the model of the Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure and the French historian

Michel Foucault.

On the one hand, Saussure’s structuralist approach of semiotics stresses the

signification system in language, whereby the signified and the signifiers work to produce

meaning. On the other hand, Foucault’s poststructuralist model of discursive practices

investigates power relationships and knowledge in discourse and perceives the subject as

constituted through discourse. Saussure’s constructionist approach has many limitations. The

first limitation lies in stressing the formal aspects of language, while neglecting dialogue or

language interaction.

This research paper is chiefly embracing the reflective approach to representation

whereby reality is being used as a normative standard to measure the quality of newspaper

articles. The key rationale for using this model is because of the study’s exploration of news

content, and analyses of the news tend to explore the relationship between the reporting of

reality and the referent. In this case the referent refers to the events in the material world,

therefore the constructionist approach, which neglects to explore the material structures within

which language is produced, provides an inadequate model for this work.

17
 2.3. Political Islam in Morocco

Morocco is one of the few Arab countries that was able to sustain its monarchical regime

regardless of the turbulent times which have been shaking the Arab world. The country has

been ruled by the Alaouite dynasty since the mid-seventeenth century. The king is both the

mundane leader and the religious ruler (Commander of the faithful), who incarnates a spiritual

authority. As a matter of fact, the monarch’s authenticity originates from the fact of being a

descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him). During the reign of king

Hassan II, the main monarchical regime’s opponents were mainly Leftists. The king’s

reaction, therefore, was drastic and the phase from the 1960s to the 1980 is known as the years

of lead. During this period, the situation was insecure as there were two coups d’état in the

1970s, and successive protests in the 1980s and the 1990s. In 1974, an unprecedented event

took place when Abdessalam Yassine, the leader of the Moroccan Islamist organisation Al-

Adl Wa Al-Ihssan (Justice and Spirituality), wrote a letter to king Hassan II in which he

decries his rule and describes it as unislamic. This very incident had marked the outburst of a

new kind of opposition that of political Islam. And Since then, Morocco witnessed a gradual

ascendency of Islamism. According the Islamic Studies expert Mohamed Darif, the

resurgence of Islamism in Morocco was attributed to the great impact of the Islamic Iranian

Revolution of 1979. To put it in Darif’s exact terms as cited in (Marvin Howe 2005):

The Iranian revolution of 1979 had an enormous impact on this country,

although Moroccans are Sunni Muslims, not Shiites as in Iran. Moroccans,
who suffered more than two decades of harsh political repression, could
easily empathize with the Iranian’s revolt against a corrupted monarchy.

King Hassan II, subsequently, adopted an unprecedented religious plan that seeks to

support Islamism which counteracts Nasser’s doctrine and the Left in Morocco. Founded in

1969 by Abdelkrin Moutii, the Islamic Youth Association (Al-Chabiba Islamiyya) was able to

win the palace’s support due to its opposition to the Marxist and Moroccan Leftists’

ideologies. The majority of scholars agree that the Islamic Youth Association was the first

18
organized Islamist group in Morocco that was meant to limit the power of the left parties

mainly Independence party and USFP. However, the organization’s abrupt growing appeal

and Moutii’s adoption of Sayyid Qutb’s discourse urged the palace to contain the power of the

association and defame it (Bouyahya, 2015: 3). According to Darif (1992), After the murder

of Omar Ben Jelloun, many members of the Islamic Youth Association were arrested for this

incident. Moutii then was compelled to leave the country and run the association from abroad.

He therefore continued his combativeness and wrote a book entitled Al-Mujahid in which he

harshly criticizes the monarchical regime and its acts.

Shahin (1997) states that numerous key members and militants of the association

withdrew their membership. A few members like Baha, Benkirane, Yatim and Othmani turned

out to be keen on forming a political party. In 1983, they formed AL-Jama’a al-islamiyya (the

Islamic Community) and looked for official recognition. Yet Al-Jama’a was obliged to

change its name and quit any allusion to Islam. Afterwards, Al-Jama’a became Movement of

Reform and Renewal (Harakat Al-Islah wa Tawhid). The movement sought to voice the

demands of its constituency and guarantee political participation. Thereafter, the movement

founders declared the formation of a new political party called National Renewal Party (Hizb

At-Tajdid Al- Watani). Still, the party was denied official recognition in spite of its assertion

that the party has no intention whatsoever to use Islam for political reasons. According to

Willis (2004), the party chief leaders were compelled “to look for fielding candidates in

elections under the banner of officially recognized political parties”. The Movement of

Reform and Renewal, subsequently, chose the little- known political party the Constitutional

and Democratic Popular Movement. It was due to this party that Islamists could enter the

political sphere. In 1998, the Constitutional and Democratic Popular

19
Movement became officially Party of Justice and Development (PJD). Al-Khatib, the

founding father of the Islamist Party of Justice and Development, kept on stressing that the

modification of the party’s name is a change of orientation rather than a mere alteration of the

party’s name. Thus, being an Islamist political party, the PJD has faced several hurdles and

experienced many transformations to reach its present condition. This brief overview exhibits

that Moroccan Islamist movements are as pluralistic as the country’s cultural make up. On the

one hand, the non-political movements tend to focus on preaching and refrain from interfering

in politics. On the other hand, the political Islamist movements take part in the political

decision-making process and articulate many complex social and economic concerns.

Darif (1992) distinguishes three sorts of Moroccan Islamist political movements: the

radicals, syntheticals, and reformists. While radicals believe in the power of political violence

and Jihad in re-Islamizing the state and society, syntheticals consent to democracy yet they

challenge the official interpretation of Islam. They stress the paramount importance of having

a strict religious education and they put it at the heart of their educational agenda. Last but not

least, Reformists are generally well-educated; they completely dismiss violence and the idea

that it can be an efficient instrument of change. Unlike Radicals, they support the democratic

processes and reject working clandestinely. PJD and MRR are examples of this type.

After the death of his father king Hassan II, king Muhammad VI succeeded to the throne and

came up with a new progressive agenda which allowed him to be welcomed by both liberals

and Islamists. According to Mohamed Daadaoui, king Muhammad VI makes sure “to

capitalize on institutionalized rituals of power to undercut the mobilization reach of the

Islamists” (2013: 33). For Daadaoui, the key conflicts surrounding the nature of the Moroccan

state had ceased to influence political party activism.

20
 As opposed to most of Arab countries, Morocco has not gone through the experience of

the Arab Spring, yet it had its share of protests and unrest. In 2011, ensuing the Tunisian and

Egyptian revolts, thousands of Moroccans took the streets and rallied under the name of “The

20 February Movement” to call for social justice, equality and democracy. During the

demonstrations, there were no demands to oust the regime, but there was a will to restrict

royal powers under a constitutional monarchy. Following this incident, king Mohamed VI

announced plans to reform the old constitution and embark on many reforms. A general

election resulted in the triumph of the Islamist Justice and Development Party, which proved

its resilience and ability to secure a foothold in the political arena. In this regard, Avi Spiegel

(2013) states that “the PJD provides a different model of political participation that partly

reflects the unique monarchical system”. The Justice and Development party has managed to

secure a foothold in government by adopting a flexible posture towards the monarchy,

whereas the movement of Al-Adl Wal Ihsan has remained marginal and resorted to peaceful

activism.

Unlike Al-Adl wal Ihsan which seeks to demystify the monarchy and render it a subject

for criticism, the PJD supports the monarchy’s religious legitimacy and considers it a major

pillar of the country. The PJD has managed to display itself as a reformist actor which

operates within the system to induce a socio-economic change.

21
3. Theoretical Framework

Considering the nature of this study which attempts to display how Moroccan political

Islam is represented in American newspapers, content analysis is used as the major data

analysis method. Content analysis of articles from the three elite newspapers in America helps

deducing the way American print media portray Moroccan Islamism. For adequate

examination of the study therefore, the framing theory and content analysis shall be reviewed

and examined.

3.1. Content Analysis

Content analysis is a scientific method which allows researchers to grasp and examine

communication content. According to Berelson (1952), content analysis is “a research

technique for the objective, systematic, and quantitative description of the manifest content of

communication”. Klaus Krippendorff (1980), however, considers this definition controversial

as it limits content analysis to the surface structure of a text. He also affirms that the fact of

describing this method as being objective is not necessarily valid since media communication

content can be interpreted in different ways. As far as Krippendorff is concerned, content

analysis is “a research technique for making replicable and valid inferences from data to their

concept”.

As for Weber (1985), content analysis is “a research methodology that utilizes a set of

procedures to make valid inferences from text”. Weber’s definition differs from its previous

counterparts as it stresses that the text’s analyser can make valid inferences from the text.

These inferences revolve around the sender of the message, the message itself, and the

message’s audience. In this context, Stone confirms Weber’s definition and adds that

‘’content analysis refers to any procedure for assessing the relative extent to which specified

references, attitudes, or themes permeate a given message or document’’.

22
 The former definitions stress the notion of measurement and manifest content, whereas

Weber’s definition encourages the interpreter to infer meaning from the text. For him, content

analysis is not restricted to quantifying words frequency, yet it scrutinises other discursive

elements such as the sender of the message, the message itself, and the audience.

A meticulous reading of the definitions above exhibits a unanimous agreement on the

following principles of content analysis as a scientific method. These criteria are objectivity,

systemacy, and generalizability. To put it in Devi Prasad’s own words:

Content analysis conforms to three basic principles of scientific

method. They are: 1. Objectivity: Which means that the analysis is
pursued on the basis of explicit rules, which enable different
researchers to obtain the same results from the same documents or
messages. 2. Systematic: The inclusion or exclusion of content is
done according to some consistently applied rules where by the
possibility of including only materials which support the
researcher’s ideas – is eliminated. 3. Generalizability: The results
obtained by the researcher can be applied to other similar
situations.

Content analysis aims to obtain an accurate description of communication content. The

reliability and accuracy of findings are much emphasised — the same applies to any

quantitative method like observation, questionnaire, and experiment. That is why, quantitative

content analysis focuses on the neutrality of data collection and analysis, data credibility, the

control of sampling and statistical methods.

On the other hand, qualitative methods which appeared in the 1970s have greatly

impacted the evolution of content analysis. This method relies on beliefs which differ from

those of the quantitative methodology. Therefore, new sorts of inquiry objectives have

surfaced and produced new kinds of research outcomes.

23
 3.2. Quantitative and Qualitative Content Analyses

Content analysis is a typical scientific method mostly used in social sciences and mass

communication studies, and can be used both in quantitative and qualitative studies. Looking

at it from one side, many scholars see content analysis as a distinctive feature of quantitative

research and preclude the potential of qualitative research. Looking at it from the other side,

scholars like Veal (2006) behold that it is a research method that can fit both quantitative and

qualitative examination of the data. Quantitative content analysis deals with the counting of

words frequency and time in the cases of radio and television. On a quantitative level, content

analysis includes any sort of analysis in which content is grouped and classified.

Unlike quantitative analysis which is limited to the numerical analysis of data, qualitative

analysis provides a detailed interpretation of a given text by relating it to its context. In this

regard, Mayring (2000: 23) states that:

Qualitative content analysis is an approach of empirical,

methodological controlled analysis of texts within their
context of communication, following content analytic
rules and step-by-step models, without rash
quantification.

Thanks to qualitative content analysis, social reality is understood scientifically and

subjectively. According to Shannon (2005), qualitative content analysis is ‘“a research method

for the subjectivist interpretation of text and data through the systematic classification process

of coding and identifying themes or patterns” (p. 12). The researcher then provides a

description of the findings relying on the data analysis which generate conclusions and further

study. Qualitative content analysis therefore is crucial to comprehend the text’s profound

meaning and the public’s various interpretations.

24
 One of the distinctive features of this method is its ability of using inductive or

deductive approaches or both of them. According to Elo & Kyngäs (2008), in the literature

content analysis often adopts two contradicted methods: quantitative or qualitative. Mixed

approach (triangulation) is usually applied as a third alternative, which accommodates the two

distinct methods.

Another unique characteristic of content analysis is its capability of applying the

inductive or the deductive approach. The inductive approach is appropriate when prior

knowledge regarding the phenomenon under investigation is limited or fragmented. In the

inductive approach, codes, categories, or themes are directly inferred from the data. The

deductive approach, however, starts with preconceived codes or categories derived from prior

relevant theory, research, or literature. The deductive approach is appropriate when the

objective of the study is to test existing theory or retest existing data in a new context.

Ultimately, as any other scientific research method, content analysis has its advantages

and limitations. In this regard, Forman and Damschroder (2008) believes that the remarkable

feature of qualitative content analysis is that it is “a more hands-on approach to research than

quantitative content analysis” (p. 60). Nevertheless, McNamara (2006) maintains that

qualitative content analysis depends to a great extent on the researcher’s interpretation of the

texts. Still, many scholars contradict McNamaras’s point of view and consider it another

Limitation of qualitative content analysis, as it puts an intense emphasis on the researcher who

can be biased.

25
 3.3. Case Studies

Content analysis is one of the most frequently used research methods in the fields of

social science and mass communication studies. By the same token, reviewing relevant case

studies in a content analysis paper is a useful tool for the introductory phase of descriptive,

explanatory or exploratory research. According to Jennifer Rowley (2002), the adoption of

case studies helps providing answers to ‘’how’’ and ‘’why’’ questions. In this chapter, three

case studies, which are grounded on content analysis of newspapers coverage of Muslims and

Islam, are going to be reviewed. The pertinence of the following case studies — Halisatu

Aziz (2015), Indraja Gugle (2016), and Naureen Aqueel (2015) — stems from their use of

content analysis as the major data analysis method and their reliance on newspaper texts as

their primary data.

In the first case study, Halisatu Aziz (2015) inquires the representation of Islam in

Ghanian newspapers by applying a quantitative content analysis of 172 news stories on Islam

published in the Daily Graphic and Daily Guide newspapers in 2013, 2014 and the first half

of 2015. Halisatu’s findings are derived from a careful analysis of the two<, prominent

Ghanian newspapers. As opposed to what is believed in the literature, Halisatu finds out that

the 172 stories on Islam that were analysed, 64.5 percent were neutral, which contradicts the

commonly held belief that stresses the negativity of the media’s coverage of Islam. He also

discloses that most of the stories which were coded for as negative in tone were sourced from

foreign agencies like BBC and CNN and were mostly terrorist activities. All news items that

were written by Ghanaians were mostly positive issues like charity, donations and religious

issues such as celebration of religious festivals.

26
 In the second case study, Indraja Gugle (2016) investigates how Islam was represented

in the aftermath of the attacks of Charlie Hebdo in the press of France, USA, and Pakistan.

The study aims to examine how Muslim immigrants are being treated by the press and how

such treatment may or may not affect the freedom of expression. By adopting a quantitative

and qualitative content analysis, newspaper articles from each country were analysed to gather

information about the tendencies in reportage about Muslims and the freedom of expression.

The language used to describe Islam and Muslims was also examined, and so were the sources

used in the stories. Results exhibit a shift in the way Islamic terrorism is being represented.

The Islamophobic tone was not the dominant aspect of the press discourse as efforts were

being made to grasp the roots and causes of terrorism as a violent practice rather than

demonising Islam as a faith. As for freedom of expression, the research paper finds that all

three countries have shown a tendency to reject the right to offend, though freedom of

expression is one the key components of any democracy.

In the third and last case study, Naureen Aqueel (2015) examines the role of Muslim

media, which is established in North America in voicing new different discourses, which

opposes and challenges the mainstream media. To this purpose, two print Muslim newspapers,

The Muslim Link (United States) and Muslim Link (Canada), are used to explore how the

journalism, goals and practices of the Muslim media differ from the mainstream media. A

mixed method approach, comprising comparative content analysis, discourse and text analysis

and interviews, is used in the study. The content of both Muslim newspapers is compared to

the mainstream newspapers of their respective regions. Drawing from theoretical perspectives

on alternative media, the findings show, in varying ways, that these Muslim newspapers can

provide an alternative in terms of their coverage, representations and discourses. The

newspapers are also able to foster social and political engagement in their

27
communities and in many ways, attempt to write the Muslim community’s own narrative

about itself.

To conclude, this section has reviewed part of the prime literature which is believed to

be pertinent and crucial to the development of this paper. First, this paper has offered a brief

account of political Islam as a relatively recent phenomenon and the hot debate it has struck in

the Western media. It has also alluded to political Islam in the context of Morocco, how

diverse it is and different from other Islamic countries, media representation and framing and

their paramount importance in shaping the public opinion. Moreover, this chapter has also

outlined what has been said by some of the pioneer scholars on content analysis theory since

its beginning in the 1950s.

The last section, on the other hand, has presented three case studies: Halisatu Aziz

(2015), Indraja Gugle (2016), and Naureen Aqueel (2015). The relevance of these case studies

stems from their use of content analysis of newspaper articles to investigate the representation

of Islam and Muslims in various newspapers from three corners of the world; mainly USA,

France, and Ghana. The findings, in fact, differ from one case study to the other. While

Halistatu (2015) finds out that most of the stories which were coded for as negative in tone

were sourced from foreign agencies like BBC and CNN and were mostly terrorist activities,

Indraja (2016) contends that the Islamophobic tone was not the dominant aspect of the press

discourse as efforts were being made to grasp the roots and causes of terrorism as a violent

practice. Naureen Aqueel (2015), however, proves through his findings that Muslim

newspapers can provide alternative representations and discourses. These newspapers are also

able to foster social and political engagement in their communities and in many ways, attempt

28
to write the Muslim community’s own narrative about itself. Last but not least, the three

reviewed case studies along with the research questions and the study’s objectives have all

affirmed the necessity of adopting content analysis as an analysis method.

29
4. Methodology

This section displays the main employed processes of gathering, classifying and

analysing data. The criteria of selection of the newspaper articles about political Islam in

Morocco are carefully described. This section likewise delineates the variables and elucidates

how the content analysis approach is applied to analyse newspapers content.

4.1 Data Collection

This research paper is a content analysis of newspaper articles in The New York Times,

The Washington Post, and USA Today related to the coverage of Moroccan Islamism. The

chief concern of this study is to inspect how Moroccan political Islam is represented in three

of the elite American newspapers. Therefore, the major data for this paper are newspaper

articles related to the coverage of political Islam in Morocco from 2011 until 2017. The

choice of the year 2011 is very significant in the sense that it marked the beginning of the

Arab spring events, which is a major turning point in the history of the Arab world in general

and Morocco.

The Sample of this study consists of 60 articles published from January 2011 to 2017.

The chosen articles meet the following key criteria. First, they tackle the topic of Islamism in

Morocco, or compare it to other Arab countries. Second, they are published in one of the top

ten American newspapers. Finally, they comprise at least 60 terms related to the topic of the

research paper.

The selection of the aforementioned American newspapers is not done at random; these

newspapers have high circulation and readership rates and they play a central role in shaping

30
the American public opinion as well as affecting the decision-making process. According to

the American Audit bureau of circulation (2016), USA Today is ranked the first American

newspaper in regard to circulation (2,301,917) succeeded by The New York Times

(2,101,611), the Wall Street Journal (1,337,376), and The Washington Post (356,768).

The chart below displays the top 10 American daily newspapers by circulation.

Table 4.1: Top Daily American Newspapers Ordered by Circulation

The Newspaper Circulation

1. USA Today 2,301,917

2. The New York Times 2,101,611

3. The Wall Street Journal 1,337,376

4. Los Angeles Times 467,309

5. New York Post 424,721

6. Chicago Tribune 384,962

7. The Washington Post 356,768

8. Newsday 321,296

9. Daily News 299,538

10. New York 298,759

http://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-10-most-popular-daily-newspapers-in-the-united-states.html-for-May-2017

31
The table above presents the top ten daily American newspapers, yet this study adopts a

sample of three newspapers from the list; USA Today, The Washington Post, and The New

York Times. The total number of the articles gathered from the three aforementioned

newspapers is 170 articles. The articles content is divided into topics that tackle political Islam

in Morocco as the main country, and others which address the issue of Islamism in other Arab

countries while alluding to Morocco. Although the search resulted in the appearance of 170

articles, only the most pertinent 60 articles were selected so as to carefully analyse them. The

table below exhibits the number of articles per each selected newspaper.

Table 4.2: Number of Articles by Newspaper

Original Number
of Articles (the
Title sample of 500 Selected Articles (60 articles)
articles)

1. The New York Times 50 15

2. The Washington Post 40 15

3. USA Today 80 30

The source of the data is the LexisNexis database. The related articles surfaced after

typing some key words like “Islamism in Morocco”, “Moroccan Political Islam’’, ‘’PJD’’, or

“Islamic movements in Morocco”. The key word “Morocco” was also added alone to the

search bar to guarantee more pertinent data. This procedure has resulted in the eradication of

irrelevant articles which divert from the focal interest of this paper that of political Islam in

Morocco in all of its aspects. Lastly, the search was guided and narrowed by the setting of the

period between 2011 to 2017 as a key criterion of the selection of articles.

32
4.2. Data Classification

The chief concern of this paper is to investigate how Moroccan political Islam is

portrayed in three of the prominent daily American newspapers. Therefore, two classification

criteria are adopted. The first classification method divides the newspapers according to their

editorial line to inspect whether they have similar or different attitudes, positive or negative

tone towards political Islam in Morocco. The second one, however, relies on the major tackled

issues in the newspaper articles.

In this study, the newspaper articles are divided into two main categories. Two liberal

newspapers The New York Times and The Washington Post and one conservative USA Today.

Working on these twofold categories would offer a more nuanced view of how liberal and

conservative American newspapers represent Islamism in Morocco. According to The

Cambridge English Dictionary, the term liberal means “accepting beliefs and behaviour that

are new or different from your own’’. Politically speaking, “liberal entails “Liberal political

ideas emphasise the need to make new laws as society changes and the need for government

to provide social services”. As for the term conservative, The Oxford Dictionary defines it

as “Averse to change or innovation, holding traditional values, and favouring free enterprise,

private ownership, and socially conservative ideas”.

4.2.1. Classification by Newspapers’ Editorial Line

The pertinence of classifying newspaper articles in terms of their editorial line stems

from its primordial role in interpreting the tone and the attitude a newspaper holds towards

Islamism in Morocco. Bearing in mind that the “Liberal” or “Conservative” dichotomy

reflects the newspaper’s political tendency, the selection of topics, their interpretation and

33
presentation are often driven by specific interests. In this regard, Tim Groseclose and Jeff

Milyo (2005) assert that while liberal is associated with the Democratic party, conservative is

strictly related to the Republican party. This means that the alignment of a newspaper with a

given political party voices the interests of that party, which impacts public opinion and the

voting behaviour.

In their work entitled A Measure of Media Bias, Groseclose and Milyo contend that all

media procedures are biased starting from the news selection to the presentation phase. They

also add that that media bias seldom occurs by distorting reality, yet rather through the ellipsis

of peculiar facts which are essential to the unfolding of the story. Yet, this is not the only

illustration of media bias, it takes in fact many forms. Steven Allen (1992), the head of CRC’s

Investigative unit and the former press secretary to U.S. Senator Jeremiah Denton, came up

with the following eight types of media bias:

1) Bias by commission: a pattern of unfounded assumptions and

uncorrected errors that tend to support a left-wing or liberal view.
2) Bias by omission: a pattern of ignoring facts that tend to
disprove liberal or left-wings claims, or that support conservative
beliefs. 3) Bias by story selection: a pattern of highlighting news
stories that coincide with the agenda of the Left while ignoring
stories that coincide with the agenda of the Right.4) Bias by
placement: a pattern of placing news stories so as to downplay
information supportive of conservative views. 5) Bias by the
selection of the experts: the use of such phrases as ‘’most experts
believe’’ and ‘’observers say’’, or a reporter’s deliberate selection
of experts who share his point of view. 6) Spin: emphasizing
certain aspects in the story in the hope that other aspects will be
ignored. 7) Bias by the labeling of activists, organisations, and
ideas: the media’s power to label people is one of its most subtle,
and potent. Responsible conservatives are sometimes stigmatized
as ‘’far-right’’, ‘’ultra-conservatives’’, or ‘’right wing
extremists’’, while radicals, even Marxists, are called
‘’progressives, liberals, or moderates. 8) bias by policy
recommendation: when reporter’s list possible solutions to
society’s problems, the solutions are almost always on the agenda
on the Left (raise taxes, cut defense, have taxpayers pay for
abortions, issue more government regulations.

The table below presents the editorial line of the three selected American newspapers,

34
 the number of adopted articles from each one, and the date of coverage of the data.

Table 4.3. Information of Each Selected Newspaper

Newspaper Editorial Line Articles Number Period of Coverage

USA Today Conservative 30 2011- 2017

The New York Times Liberal 15 2011-2016

The Washington Post Liberal 15 2011-2016

4.2.2. Classification by Top Tackled Issues

Another major criterion of data classification is sorting out the most tackled issues in

the articles. After skimming and scanning the selected articles, it shows that the data address

mostly the following issues with different recurrence. The first addressed issue is the Islamist

Party of Justice and Development as a leading party, the main taken decisions by the PJD as

well as their resilience in the wake of the Arab spring are two of the most highlighted themes.

The second topic, monarchy, pertains to king Mohammed VI religious diplomacy within

Morocco and the paramount importance of religion in the sustenance of the monarchical

institution, the king’s popularity, and the stability of the country. The third issue is Islamic

movements in Morocco, and it deals with the orientation, goals, and role of each movement in

the Moroccan political sphere. The fourth issue, entitled terrorism, addresses the attitude of

the government towards terrorism and its endeavors. The fifth issue is religion, and it pertains

to the coverage of topics related to the religious leanings and controversy.

As far as Weber (1990) is concerned, data can be classified in terms of the three

following elements. The first classification method divides the text’s content into positive and

35
negative categories; whereas the second classifies it in terms of strength and weakness. The

last method classifies the units of the text into active and passive. Yet, the focal interest of this

paper is to classify newspaper articles in terms of positive and negative effects.

Besides listing the most tackled issues in articles, this study attempts to inspect the tone

and the dominant attitudes about Islamism in Morocco in the three selected American

newspapers. In this context, the newspaper articles are split into those reflecting prevailing

negative attributes and those disclosing overriding positive characteristics. Nevertheless, this

paper does not only focus on the positive and negative attitude of a given newspaper, it also

classifies the data into neutral and ambivalent attitudes.

In his seminal work entitled Positive and Negative Associations Underlying Ambivalent

Attitudes, De Liver (2007) contends that ‘’ambivalent attitudes are thought to have both

positive and negative associations’’. However, ambivalent attitudes are distinguished from

neutral attitudes in terms of the extent of positive and negative overtone. Unlike ambivalent

attitudes, associations in neutral attitudes are believed to be weak.

The adopted parts of speech for analysis are the following. Looking at it from one side,

there are specific nouns which are checked out to uncover the top tackled issues mentioned

above. The parts of speech units are determined by the words which recurred at least 20 times.

The selection of this frequency is to exhibit the most and least frequent terms. Only pertinent

nouns which resonate to the focus of the study are kept, other words like day, place, woman,

etc. are discarded. Looking at it from the other side, adjectives and verbs do also disclose and

classify attitudes. In fact, these parts of speech units are chosen according to a frequency

which equals or exceeds 15. This recurrence detects the prevailing adjectives and verbs. The

software program KH Coder, used for quantitative content analysis and text mining, helps

distinguishing the aforementioned parts of speech, their recurrence and classification. The
36
software offers a part of speech option which helps in the classification and analysis of the

newspaper articles.

4.3. Data Analysis Method

This study adopts a quantitative and qualitative data analysis methods. Quantitatively

speaking, the newspaper articles are analysed by using the software program KH Coder,

which performs a set of procedures to depict the manifest content of the data. In this regard

Weber (1990) states that content analysis relies on measurement as a key method which

enumerates words, phrases, themes, and content categories’ frequency. Being a chief aspect of

content analysis, counting, discloses various aspects of the text content. Still, the data analysis

is not restricted to the quantitative procedures solely, qualitative analysis is also part and

parcel of this study. It cannot be neglected that quantitative analysis provides numeral

findings, which its qualitative counterpart builds on to generate a more profound analysis and

interpretation. As stated by scholars like Berelson (1948) and Krippendorf (2004), providing

statistical frequencies does not denote much unless it is complemented by qualitative analysis

which infers the hidden meaning of a given text, what is known in the academia as ‘’latent

content’’. In this paper, inferring latent content occurs by relating the quantitative findings to

the adopted variables, which are the most covered issues and the newspapers’ editorial line.

Moreover, qualitative analysis also allows cross checking and interpreting quantitative results.

Data analysis is one of the major stages of any research paper which responds to the

already asked research questions. Selecting adequate methods to present the findings is

another key element which participates in the clarity and transmission of the results. This

study therefore makes use of different visual tools like charts, tables, histograms and pie

charts to better illustrate the final findings.

37
 To conclude, this section has displayed the major adopted procedures of data

collection, classification, coding, analysis and interpretation. It has demonstrated the criteria

upon which the sixty chosen articles on the topic of Moroccan Islamism in three daily

American newspapers. The data is classified in terms of two variables; mainly the most

covered issues and newspapers’ editorial line. The software program KH coder is of much

help when it comes to the coding, classification, and the analysis of the data. However, it is

not the only used method, as the qualitative side is integrated with the quantitative one. The

qualitative analysis is used to make inferences about the latent content of the newspaper

articles, and interpret the statistical findings.

The following section, indeed, complements the methodology section. It presents the

major findings of this study and puts into practice the data classification and analysis methods.

The sixty articles are distributed over the four prevailing issues to shed light on the attitudinal

differences among Conservative and Liberal newspapers.

5. Findings

The main findings of the study are presented in this chapter. Quantitatively, the sixty

38
selected articles are dispensed on the fifth prevailing issues to shed light on their discrepancy.

These five issues are divided into conservative, liberal, negative, positive, neutral, and

ambivalent. The findings are also cross checked and interpreted with the help of some

explanations that help better grasping the context.

5.1. The Most Covered Issues

After analysing the data quantitatively, it is shown that the sixty articles cover mostly

the following eight issues, with distinct recurrence: government, monarchy, Islam, terrorism,

and Freedom of expression. The category of others, however, comprise all topics which

address news about economy or education. The table below presents the number of articles

addressing each of the five issues.

Table 5.1. Number of Articles Dealing with Each Issue

Issues Number of Articles Percentage

Covering the issue

Government (PJD) 40 66,66%

Monarchy 25 41,66%

Islam 30 50%

Terrorism 28 46,66%

Freedom of expression 20 33,33%

Others 2 3,33%

The pie chart above displays the most covered issues in the three selected newspapers,

from February 2011 to April 2017. One newspaper article, for instance, may address more

than two issues related to political Islam in Morocco. These issues mirror the type of news the

39
three American newspapers were mostly interested in while covering Islamism in Morocco.

The news, in fact, can be split into three major parts. The first is the political bodies of the

country such as the government (PJD) and the monarchy, which constitute the first most

tackled issue. In consonance with what Mohamed Daadaaoui (2012) stated in his article

Islamism and the State in Morocco:

The Moroccan monarchy’s strength lies in its spiritual

authority, which is based on a variety of religious
claims about political legitimacy. The PJD’s path, on
the other hand, involves incremental societal changes
through reforms within the regime’s institutions, rather
than insurrectionist attacks on the state and society
favoured by Islamists elsewhere.

The second section, Religion, highlights the nature of Islam in Morocco, the use of religion

for political reasons, and the various leanings of certain Moroccan Islamic movements. The

third category, terrorism, addresses Morocco’s main taken initiatives in this regard and the

international matters it is taking part in, primarily the fight against terrorism. The fourth and

last category, Freedom of speech, highlights the paramount importance of voicing one’s

opinion as a fundamental human right and a sign of any democracy.

Considering the socio-political changes that Morocco has been going through in the

last six years, there is no wonder that the four mentioned categories occupy the largest

proportion of the tackled issues about Moroccan Islamism in three of the elite American

newspapers.

The description of the four most tackled issues is backed by certain nouns’ frequency

in the 60 articles. The importance of this method lies in its efficiency in exhibiting and

underlining the major addressed matters. The choice of nouns’ grouping, as stated in the

methodology section, is based on a recurrence which equals or exceeds 20. Nouns which have

40
no specific allusion to the four most addressed issues, such as day or hour, are discarded. The

counting is done by the software program KH Coder.

Table 5.2. Nouns’ Frequency in the 60 Articles

Nouns Their Frequency Nouns Their Frequency

Islam 100 Security 90

Morocco 253 Democracy 115

Government 210 Stability 50

monarchy 110 Authority 80

King 134 Protest 30

Islamism 150 Violence 60

Media 26 Regime 48

Islamist 553 Change 116

Muslim 151 Order 40

Power 138 February 30

Crisis 20 Reform 55

Pluralism 46 Activist 60

Tolerance 50 Demonstration 44

Terrorism 65 Corruption 36

Human 40 Freedom 80

Jihad 33 Human 35

The nouns and adjectives’ recurrence in the tables above reveal that the three elite

American newspapers are much more interested in the religious and political spheres while

41
covering political Islam in Morocco. However, the figures above also show that the social

field occupies an important share of the coverage, which comes last in the category of the

most frequent words. Bearing in mind that politics, religion, and society are strictly related

fields, it is no wonder that they dominate the list of most frequent issues.

Religion Islam, Islamist, Islamism, Muslim, Jihad,

moderation
Politics King, government, monarchy, authority;
democracy,
Society Rights, violence, security, corruption,
reform,

5.1.1. The Most Covered Issues in Liberal and Conservative American Newspapers

As mentioned in the methodology section, there is a sheer distinction between the 30

articles under the label of Liberal and the other 30 articles belonging to a Conservative

newspaper. Such difference reflects the extent to which each newspaper’s category is keen on

Moroccan political Islam and what aspects of this latter which is more interested in.

Nevertheless, the study’s focus does not only reside in displaying the main covered issues in

three of the most circulated American newspapers, yet to examine the contrast between

Conservative and Liberal newspapers in covering Islamism in Morocco. The histogram below

presents the variance in covering the four most covered issues between Liberal newspapers

(The New York Times and The Washington Post) and the Conservative Newspaper (USA

Today).

Figure 5.1. Main Issues’ Distribution in Liberal and Conservative Newspapers

42
 As shown in the histogram above, the most tackled issues in Liberal newspapers (The

New York Times and The Washington Post) are Islamism, the Moroccan government (PJD),

and the monarchy. On the one hand, this finding demonstrates that Liberal newspapers are

more concerned with the religious and political issues, which are the two key components of

political Islam. Conversely, the issues of terrorism and freedom of speech are slightly

covered. In the Conservative newspaper USA Today, on the other hand, the issues of terrorism

and Freedom of speech constitute the most tackled issues. In fact, the political and religious

issues are still addressed, yet they are less frequent. Such comparison exposes the contrast

between Liberal and Conservative newspapers in terms of interest in peculiar issues linked to

the coverage of Islamism in Morocco. These variant findings and different subjects of interest

may be ascribed to the editorial lines of the selected newspapers.

5.2. Attitudes’ Distribution

43
 Applying the research method of content analysis does not only permit underlining the

most addressed issues, yet it also yields inferring the attitude of the selected newspapers

towards the coverage of Islamism in Morocco in general. Counting the adjectives and verbs

frequency in the data would reflect the prevailing attitudes of both Liberal and Conservative

newspapers. The classification of the adjectives and verbs is done by dividing them into two

major categories, mainly those which have positive and negative tone. This classification

mirrors the tone and attitudes the three elite American newspapers hold towards political

Islam in Morocco. Knowing that the selected newspapers are three of the most circulated

newspapers in America, their attitudes are very significant as they can influence decision

makers and American citizens alike. In addition to the categorisation of the adjectives and

verbs into positive and negative ones, the newspaper articles are also categorised in terms of

four attitudinal groups: positive, negative, ambivalent and neutral.

A content analysis is applied to the total sixty articles in order to deduce the most

recurrent adjectives and verbs. In an attempt to disclose the prevailing adjectives and verbs,

the two part-of-speech in the table below are chosen in terms of their frequency, which equals

or exceeds 20. The table below shows both the positive and negatives adjectives and verbs.

Table 5.2. Positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in 60 Articles

Positive Effects Negative Effects

Adj. Freq. Verbs. Freq. Adj. Freq. Verbs. Freq.

Moderate 110 Support 45 Extremist 20 Fight 21

Tolerant 68 Engage 37 Terrorist 23 Threaten 23

Good 90 Achieve 21 offensive 28 Disrupt 20

peaceful 52 protect 20 kill 25

democratic 80 promote 16 attack 20

44
Reformist 66 Reform 22

Progressive 39 Promise 24

Human 40 Reconcile 20

Liberal 22 Encourage 30

Important 21

Total 588 Total 235 Total 71 Total 75

General 823 General 146

Outcome: Outcome:

As illustrated in the table above, it is apparent that the number of positive adjectives and

verbs outnumber the total negative ones. This proves the predominance of the positive attitude

over the negative one in the entire sixty articles. The data is classified in terms of four

attitudinal groups: positive, negative, neutral, and ambivalent. The positive category

comprises articles with strong positive characteristics; whereas the negative category consists

of articles which have strong negative traits. The neutral category, on the other hand, includes

articles with the least strong effects. Lastly, articles which belong to the ambivalent category

comprise both strong positive and negative effects. The following graph presents the

percentage of articles according to the revealed attitudes in the whole data:

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0
Positive Negative Neutral Ambivalent

45
 Figure 5.2. Distribution of Newspaper Articles According to their Revealed Attitudes

Similar to the results found in the section of the most tackled issues, the distribution of

articles according to their attitudes has also highlighted the clear differences concerning the

newspapers’ attitudes towards those issues. The graph above demonstrates that 58,33% of the

selected articles expose a predominant positive attitude in what concerns the religious and

political fields in Morocco. On the contrary, the negative attitude only occupies 18% of the

total articles, which is far less than the positive attitude. Finally, the neutral attitude forms

15.78% of the data and the ambivalent attitude comes last and constitute 7,89% of the sixty

articles.

5.2.2. Prevailing Attitudes in Liberal Newspapers

As stated in the methodology section, this study does not only endeavour to expose the

dominant attitudes of the whole articles, yet to mirror the attitude of both Conservative and

Liberal newspapers; each in turn. To do this, articles from each editorial line are analysed

separately. The articles are categorised in terms of four attitudinal groups: positive, negative,

neutral, and ambivalent. The positive category comprises articles with strong positive

characteristics; whereas the negative category consists of articles which have strong negative

traits. The neutral category, on the other hand, includes articles with the least strong effects.

Lastly, articles which belong to the ambivalent category comprise both strong positive and

negative effects. The following pie charts present the distribution of attitudes in Liberal and

46
Conservative articles:

Figure 5.3. Distribution of Attitudes in the Liberal Newspapers

The New York Times and The Washington Post

Figure 5.4. Attitudes’ Distribution in The Conservative newspaper USA Today

47
 The pie charts above have exposed the main attitudinal differences between Liberal and

Conservative newspapers. They make it plain that the thirty articles from the Liberal

newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, have shown a positive attitude

towards Islamism in Morocco and the many socio-political reforms that Morocco has assisted

since 2011; the beginning of the Arab Spring. Only 10% of the articles have a negative

attitude, 16% are neutral, and 7% are ambivalent.

The other thirty articles from the Conservative newspaper, USA Today, have reflected an

unfavourable attitude towards the issues of freedom of speech and human rights in Morocco.

Nevertheless, 25% of its articles are neutral, 30% are positive in what concerns the nature of

political Islam in Morocco, and there is no single article which holds an ambivalent attitude.

Looking at it from one side, most of the selected articles from Liberal newspapers

demonstrate a predominant, favourable attitude towards political Islam in Morocco. They

contend that the Moroccan constitution states that Islam is the state religion, yet it guarantees

the free exercise of any religion to everyone. The king is depicted as the faith protector against

extremist inclinations; whereas the Moroccan Islamist government, PJD, is considered

moderate and open to other cultures.

It is also believed that Morocco offers a unique religious model for various reasons.

First, unlike many Arab countries which are plagued by regional conflicts and anarchy,

Morocco remains consolidated by its identity and principles which bear the stamp of

moderation and tolerance. Second, the country proceeded in 2004 to restructure the religious

field as a major concern with the commitment to doctrinal unity of the nation. Finally,

Morocco provide a solid education in Islamic sciences in all disciplines as part of a unified

national school. In addition to upgrading traditional education schools, safeguarding the

48
Quranic learning system and maintaining the facilities against exploitation or deviation.

Going back to the reflected attitudes in Liberal newspapers, which is presented in the pie

chart above, it is shown that the positive attitude is the prevailing one in the total sixty articles.

The following table, however, presents the most recurrent positive and negative adjectives as

well as verbs in the thirty articles from Liberal newspapers. The adopted frequency of the two

parts of speech equals or exceeds 15. The two POS units are divided into those which have

positive and negative effects. The table below includes the frequently used adjectives in the

total number of 30 Conservative articles.

Table 5.3. Positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in Liberal newspapers

Liberal Newspapers (30 Articles)

Positive Effects Negative Effects

Adj. Freq. Verbs. Freq. Adj. Freq. Verbs. Freq.

Moderate 90 Encourage 25 Terrorist 15 kill 17

Tolerant 50 Support 35 Fight 20

Good 60 engage 30 attack 16

Democratic 70 Achieve 18

Reformist 44 Promise 19

Progressive 29 promote 15

Human 18 protect 17

important 15

49
 Total 376 Total 159 Total 15 Total 53

General Outcome: 535 General Outcome: 68

As noticed, the table above confirms the predominance of the positive adjectives and

verbs over the negative ones, which are minor. The prevalent adjectives, which describe

Islamism in Morocco and the main taken initiatives in the socio-political fields, are the

following: moderate, tolerant, peaceful, and reformist. Such adjectives reveal how Moroccan

political Islam is represented in two of the most circulated Liberal American newspapers.

5.2.3. Prevailing Attitudes in Conservative Newspapers

In attempt to reveal the attitude of the Conservative newspaper USA Today towards the

religious and socio-political fields in Morocco; which are key components of political Islam, a

counting of the most frequent adjectives and verbs is adopted. The following table displays

the main positive and negative effects. The frequency of the two selected parts of speech

equals or surpasses 15 as well.

Table 5.4. positive and Negative Adjectives and Verbs in

The Conservative Newspaper USA Today

Conservative Newspaper

Positive Effects Negative Effects

Adj. Freq. Verbs Freq. Adj. Freq. Verbs Freq.

Moderate 15 Reform 18 Terrorist 16 Kill 20

Tolerant 18 Approve 15 Offensive 20 Protest 19

50
Reformist 15 Unfair 15 Attack 15

Insecure 15 Threaten 28

Repress 15

Beat 18

Disrupt 17

Total 48 Total 33 Total 66 Total 132

General Outcome: 81 General Outcome: 198

The table above exposes the prevailing positive and negative effects in the

Conservative newspaper USA Today while taking into consideration the neutral and the

ambivalent categories (see figures 4.5. and 4.6.). As demonstrated in the table above,

the Conservative newspaper reveal a negative attitude towards the socio-political fields in

Morocco compared with its Liberal counterpart.

While recognizing the authentic and unique attributes of Islamism in Morocco and its

moderation, USA Today still harshly criticises the human rights situation in Morocco and

mainly the issue of freedom of expression. As a matter of fact, many of the selected

Conservative articles argue that despite the promising reforms introduced in 2011 and the new

reformed constitution, the situation of freedom of speech in Morocco remains critical.

Prosecuting journalists, activists, and citizens who show any criticism for the king, Islam, or

Morocco’s legitimacy over the Sahara are considered the main reasons behind the detainment

of these people and the government’s restrictions on freedom of speech. From the point of

view of the thirty selected Conservative articles, such restrictions are completely improper and

do not match the progressive reforms that Morocco has initiated.

51
 5.3. Interpretation of the Findings

After comparing the main attitudes of the Conservative newspaper USA Today and the

two Liberal newspapers: The New York Times and The Washington Post, it is apparent that

the two selected categories differ in terms of attitudes as well as the nature of the most tackled

issues.

Unlike the selected Conservative newspaper, Liberal newspapers show a more positive

attitude towards Islamism in Morocco and the changes it has gone through in the last few

years. Looking at it from one side, Liberal newspapers exhibit a favourable attitude towards

the issues of “monarchy”, “Government” (PJD), and Morocco’s effective role in countering

“terrorism”. Liberal newspapers have covered more news about Islamism in Morocco and the

52
country’s main socio-political reforms compared with the chosen Conservative newspaper. In

addition to this, Liberal newspapers have demonstrated a favourable attitude towards the

various religious, political and social issues in Morocco. The average positive attitude in

Liberal newspapers surpasses that in its Conservative counterpart. Nevertheless, this

distinction between the two different editorial lines in terms of their attitude does not

necessarily reflect a permanent position. Bearing in mind that the American media is part and

parcel of the American state policies, it is more likely that each editorial line may reflect the

stance of its affiliates in the White House.

According to Groseclose and Milyo (2005), Conservatism is attributed to the Republican

party while liberalism is often associated with the Democratic party (p. 7). This entails that the

positive stance reflected in Liberal newspapers mirrors, to a large extent, the position

Obama’s administration holds towards Moroccan Islamism and many of its aspects.

In many occasions, Obama’s administration has hailed the gradual evolution Morocco is

witnessing in various fields, and the fact that President Obama has a democratic affiliation

which is often related to liberalism, Liberal newspapers therefore are great supporters of

Obama’s administration.

To conclude, it is apparent that the hypothesis stated in the first section of this research

paper is proven true. This latter stipulates the probability of the three selected American

newspapers’ editorial line showing some clear differences in terms of attitudes. Both the data

collection and classification have reflected a variant attitudes and interests in the religious and

socio-political issues related to the coverage of Islamism in Morocco in the period that

extends from the beginning of the Arab Spring 2011 until 2017. The data analysis has also

revealed that the topic of Moroccan political Islam has not greatly influenced some areas of

53
news coverage, mainly in the Conservative newspaper USA Today. On the one hand,

Islamism has influenced the editorial line of the two chosen Liberal newspapers. The issues of

“monarchy”, “government”, and “countering terrorism” are the most addressed issues about

Islamism in Morocco. On the other hand, it has been remarked that the issue of “freedom of

speech” is covered in a negative, critical way in Conservative newspapers. As it is considered,

according to this latter, a major block to the actual implementation of the progressive taken

reforms, which is often attributed to the Islamist leading party in Morocco that restricts such a

fundamental human right.

6. Conclusion

This research paper has inspected three of the elite daily American newspapers coverage

of news about political Islam in Morocco from 2011 to 2017. The purpose of such inspection

has been to inquire how Moroccan Islamism is represented in three of the most circulated

American newspapers. To this aim, the selected data comprise sixty articles from three

American newspapers. The data were classified in terms of two categories. The first category

is the most tackled issues which resulted in the identification of five major issues; whereas the

second one is the editorial line of the chosen newspapers; the data have been divided into

“Conservative” and “Liberal” newspapers. Through the analysis, the data have been

contrasted according the following levels of classification, and the major findings have been

discussed in the light of other contexts. The data collection and classification have generated
54
variant results and highlighted the differences among Conservative and Liberal newspapers in

what concerns their subjects of interest and attitudes towards political Islam in Morocco and

the related socio-political fields. The data analysis has shown that American news coverage of

Moroccan Islamism is not the same in both types of the selected editorial lines.

The findings have proven that while political Islam in Morocco has not influenced a

large scope of newspaper articles in the Conservative newspaper USA Today, it has in fact

influenced the news coverage of the two selected Liberal newspapers The New York Times

and The Washington Post. The most covered issues about Islamism in Morocco are the

Moroccan political institutions; mainly the monarchy and the government (PJD), Islam,

terrorism, and freedom of speech. The Liberal newspapers, on the one hand, has shown a

strong positive attitude towards Islamism in Morocco in all its aspects which range from the

monarchy to the government and religion itself. The Conservative newspaper, on the other

hand, has demonstrated an unfavourable attitude while covering the issues of freedom of

speech and Islamism in Morocco. As it beholds that putting much restrictions on the freedom

of expression is due to the nature of the Islamist leading party, which relies on its religious

legitimacy to curtail such a fundamental human right. Moreover, the unique, open features of

Islamism in Morocco, according to this newspaper category, are considered theoretical and

still lack one of the pillars of any democracy, that is of freedom of speech.

The findings’ interpretation has argued that the prevailing attitude and tone of each

newspaper’s editorial line is strictly related to the stance of its affiliates in the White House.

For instance, while the Conservative newspaper USA Today shows a negative attitude

towards Islamism in Morocco and the issue of freedom of speech, Liberal newspapers display

a more positive attitude towards political Islam in Morocco and the changes the country has

55
gone through since the beginning of the Arab Spring. Such distinct attitudes and tone are

attributed to the editorial line of the newspaper, which is impacted by the position of its

affiliates who are in power. This is illustrated through the example of President Obama’s

administration and its link to the Liberal editorial line. Lastly, it has been concluded that

Liberal newspapers reflected the positive stance of President Obama’s administration towards

Islamism in Morocco and the progress the country is witnessing in various fields, during the

period from 2011 to 2017. Yet this stance is not permanent as it changes with the change of

those in power.

A comprehensive analysis of each selected newspaper could not be presented due to time

constraints. This research paper has focused more on the editorial line of each newspaper to

infer the attitudes of each separate one. Aside from that, the gathering of the data through

precise search key words and predetermined criteria does not entail the comprehensiveness of

the entire newspapers’ records. Nevertheless, upcoming research of the American

administration’s attitudes regarding the religious and socio-political fields in Morocco would

complement this study. It is also fruitful to compare both the media and the American

administration’s policies to inspect the impact of media in shaping public opinion and voicing

the view of their affiliates.

56
 References

Anderson, Jon W. 2008. “The Internet: Shaping the Post-Modern Public Sphere of
Islam”. In Crossing Boundaries: Gender, the Public and the Private in Modern Muslim
Societies. Edited by Kazuo Ohtsuka and Dale F. Eickelman. Tokio: Research Institute for
Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, 119–134.

Aqueel, Naureen. 2015. Taking Back the News? A Study of Muslim Media in North
America as Alternative Media. Ottawa: Carleton University.

Ayoob, Mohamed. (2008). The Many Faces of Political Islam. Michigan: The
University of Michigan.

Babbie, Earl. 2001. “The practice of social research” (9th ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth.

Belal, Youssef. 2012. Le cheikh et le calife. Sociologie religieuse de l’islam politique au

Maroc. Casablanca, Tarik.

Berelson, B. (1952). Content Analysis in Communication Research. New York: Hafner.

57
 Berger, A. (1991). Media Research Techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Cavatorta, Francesco. 2007. “Neither participation nor revolution: The strategy of the
Moroccan Jamiat al-Adl wal-Ihsan”. Mediterranean Politics, 12 (3), 381–397.

Darif, Muhammad. 1992. Al-Islam al-siyasa fi l-Maghrib. Casablanca, Markaz al-

thaqafi l-‘arabi.

Darif, Muhammad. 1999a. Al-Haraka al-islamiyya: al-nasha’a wa-l-tatawwur. Rabat:

Al-Zaman.

Darif, Muhammad. 1999b. Al-Islamiyyun al-maghariba: hisabat al-siyasiyya fi l-‘amal

al-islami, 1969–1999. Casablanca: Manshurat al-Majalla al-Maghribiyya li-‘Ilm al-Ijtima‘al-
Siyasi.

Darif, Muhammad. 2000. Al-Din wa-l-siyasa fi l-Maghrib. Casablanca: Manshurat al-

Majalla al-Maghribiyya li-‘Ilm al-Ijtima‘al-Siyasi.

Darif, Muhammad. 1995. Jama‘at al-‘Al wa-l-Ihsan: lira’ fi l-masarat. Rabat:

Manshurat al-Majalla al-Maghribiyya li-‘Ilm al-Ijtima‘al-Siyasi.

Darif, Muhammad. 2010. Monarchie marocaine et acteurs religieux. Casablanca:

Afrique Orient.

Denoeux, Guilain. 2002. “The Forgotten Swamp: Navigating Political Islam”, Middle
East Policy, p. 61.

Dijk, Van. 1991. Racism and the Press. London: Routledge, 1991.

El Bouzdaini, Wissam. 2015. “Mohamed Fizazi ambitionne de se présenter aux élections

législatives”. Maroc Hebdo, (07/05).

Fuller, Graham. 2003. The Future of Political Islam. Palgrave, New York, page xi.

Halisatu, Aziz. 2015. The Representation of Islam in Ghanian Newspapers: A Content

Analysis of Daily Graphic and Daily Guide. Legon: Ghana University.

Hall, Stuart (1997). Representation: cultural representations and signifying practices.

London Thousand Oaks, California: Sage in association with the Open University.

Jeffrey Milyo and Timothy Groseclose. (2005). The Electoral Effects of Incumbent
Wealth.

Izquierdo-Brichs, Ferran, and Athina Lampridi-Kemou. 2012. “Sociology of power in

today’s Arab world.” In Political Regimes in the Arab World, edited by Ferran Izquierdo-
Brichs. London and New York: Routledge.

58
 Izquierdo-Brichs, F. and J. Etherington. 2017. “From revolution to moderation? The
long road of political Islam”. In Political Islam in a Time of Revolt. Edited by F. Izquierdo-
Brichs, J. Etherington and L. Feliu. London: Palgrave.

Krippendorf, K. 1980. Content Analysis: An Introduction to its Methodology. Beverly

Hills, CA: Sage.

Mayring, P. 2000. Qualitative Content Analysis. Forum: Qualitative Social Research.

PJD, Hizb al-‘Adala wa-l-Tanmiyya. 2006. Al-Nizam al-Asasi li-Hizb al-‘Adala wa-l-
Tanmiyya. Rabat: PJD.

PJD, Hizb al-‘Adala wa-l-Tanmiyya. 2002. Fariq al-‘Adala wa-l-Tanmiyya bi Maylis

al-Nuwab: hasilat al-sanawat al-jams iltizam wa ‘ata’, 1997–2002. Rabat: PJD.

Sawdu, Rashid. 2002. Al-Haraka fi masar Harakat al-Tawhid wa-l-Islah. Rabat: Tub
Baris.

Spiegel, Avi. 2015. Succeeding by Surviving: Examining the durability of political

Islam in Morocco. Brookings: Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World.

Storm, Lise. 2009. “The Dilemma of the Islamists: Human Rights, Democratization and
the War on Terror”. Middle East Policy, 16, 1, 101–112.

Tozy, Mohamed. 2000. Monarquía e islam político en Marruecos. Barcelona:

Bellaterra.

‘Uthmani, Sa‘ad al-Din al-. 2009. Al-Din wa-l-siyasa. Tamayyiz la fasl.

Casablanca/Beirut: al-Markaz al-Thaqafi l-‘Arabi.

Weber, R. P. (1990). Basic content analysis. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Wegner, Eva. 2011. Islamist Opposition in Authoritarian Regimes. The Party of Justice
and Development in Morocco. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press.

Willis, Michael J. 1999. “Between alternance and the Makhzen: at-Tawhid wa Al-
Islah’s entry into Moroccan politics”. The Journal of North African Studies, 4, 3, 45–80.

Ya‘qubi, Abd al-Rahman al-. 1998. “Al-dimuqratiyya ka-fikr al-uslub ‘ind al-haraka al-
islamiyya”. Al-Raya, 330 (12/16), 19.

Yasin, Abd al-Salam. 1974. Al-Islam aw al-tufan. S.l.: reprography.

Yasin, Abd al-Salam. 1997. Hiwar ma’a sadiq amazighi. Casablanca: al-Ufuq.

Yasin, Abd al-Salam. 2001. Al-Minhaj al-nabawi: tarbiyya wa-tanzim wa-zahf, 4th ed.
S.l: Dar al-Afaq, 2001.

Zeghal, Malika. 2005. Les islamistes marocains. Casablanca, Le Fennec.

59
 Appendices

Links to Data:

This section presents the links to the sixty selected newspaper articles from the

following daily American newspapers: The New York Times, The Washington Post and USA

Today.

1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/10/20/the-islamists-are-back-in-
morocco-how-did-they-do-it

2. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/10/13/what-moroccos-election-
results-tell-us-about-islamist-parties/?utm_term=.5925f3f20c6d

3. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/abdessalam-yassine-moroccan-opposition-
leader-dies-at-84/2012/12/13/9ab923d4-4558-11e28061253bccfc7532_story.html?utm_term

4. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2014/10/24/the-evolution-of-islamism-
since-the-arab-uprisings/?utm_term=.299a7b3c8c43
60
5. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/10/06/moroccans-vote-friday-but-
neither-main-party-will-really-win/?utm_term=.c99fb7338a79

6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/new-arab-order-in-morocco-uproar-over-
marriage-law-tests-islamist government/2012/04/15/gIQA2kxGKT_story.html

7. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/charles-krauthammer-the-islamist-
ascendancy/2012/07/12/gJQArj9PgW_story.html?utm_term

8. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/fareed-zakaria-arab-springs-hits-and-
misses/2013/01/30/fc72dcc2-6b15-11e2-af53-7b2b2a7510a8_story.html?utm_term

9. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/how-an-obscure-policy-effort-could-hurt-american-
muslims/2017/01/11/8ce93184-d76e-11e6-b8b2-cb5164beba6b_story.html?utm_term

10. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/egypts-identity-crisis/2013/08/16/70d1459c-0524-
11e3-88d6-d5795fab4637_story.html?utm_term=.a94ed8d89f39

11. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/after-the-hope-of-the-arab-spring-the-chill-of-an-arab-
winter/2011/11/28/gIQABGqHIO_story.html?utm_term

12. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/05/16/why-jordan-and-morocco-
are-doubling-down-on-royal-rule/?utm_term

13. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/spain-attack-raises-questions-on-extremism-
among-moroccans/2017/08/22/fb7cadda-874d-11e7-96a7-
d178cf3524eb_story.html?utm_term=.cb5a318fb395

14. https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2014/06/04/morocco-tackles-radical-
islam/?utm_term

15. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/03/01/middle-east-regimes-are-
using-moderate-islam-to-stay-in-power/?utm_term

16. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/opinion/12Charai.html?mcubz=0

17. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/27/world/africa/moderate-islamist-party-winning-morocco-
election.html?mcubz=0

18. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/11/world/africa/morocco-ban-burqa-niqab.html?mcubz=0

19. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/30/world/africa/morocco-islamist-named-
premier.html?mcubz=0

20. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/03/world/africa/muslim-conference-calls-for-protection-of-
religious-minorities.html

21. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/28/world/africa/moderate-islamist-party-to-lead-coalition-
government-in-morocco.html?mcubz=0

22. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/travel/in-morocco-exploring-remnants-of-jewish-
history.html?mcubz=0

23. http://www.aidaalami.com/2016/10/morocco-test-time-for-islamic-pjd-party.html

61
24. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/19/opinion/19kristof.html?mcubz=0

25. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/world/middleeast/18youth.html?mcubz=0

26. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/26/opinion/human-rights-in-morocco.html

27. www.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/world/middleeast/12iht-M12-MOROCCO-MOVEMENT.html

28. www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/world/africa/moroccan-protests-one-year-on.html?mcubz

29. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/13/world/europe/netherlands-election-muslims.html?mcubz=0

30. https://www.nytimes.com/times-journeys/travel/culture-history-and-progress-in-
morocco/?mcubz=0

31. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-04-26-morocco-terror_N.htm

32. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-07-01-morocco-election-constitution_n.html

33. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-05-15-1683808038_x.html

34. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/08/12/morocco-moves-legalize-abortions-
cases-rape-and-incest/31153009/

35. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/07/09/key-party-quits-morocco/2502791/

36. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/story/2012-01-30/arab-spring-
christians/52894182/1

37. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/2011-02-15-riedel16_ST_N.htm

38. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2017/05/08/qatar-funding-islamism-muslim-
brotherhood-hamas-column/101300766/

39. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/11/21/obama-morocco-king-visits-white-
house/3666283/

40. http://www.usatoday.com/2012/12/16/world/africa/abdessalam-yassine-leader-of-moroccan-
opposition-movement-dies-at-84.html

41. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/02/22/morocco-dream-energy-
independence/98247966/

42. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/08/23/france-train-attack/32224933/

43. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/03/22/radicalization-isil-islam-sacred-texts-literal-
interpretation-column/81808560/

44. https://www.usatoday.com/story/theoval/2013/11/22/obama-john-f-kennedy-peace-corps-king-
mohammed-vi-of-morocco/3672713/

45. https://ww.usatoday.com/He-Was-a-Moroccan-Muslim-in-a-Refugee-Camp-She-Was-a-Mormon-
Volunteer-They-Fell-in-Love/s/83006

46. https://www.usatoday.com/world/2011/mar/09/morocco-constitutional-reform-king

62
47. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/2011-07-17-moderate-muslims_N.htm

48. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/06/09/western-sahara-independence/2394651/

49. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2013/04/16/morocco-cancels-war-games-with-us-over-
rights/2089089/

50. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-04-28-morocco-explosion_n.htm

51. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/08/19/barcelona-cambrils-terror-attack-
police/582801001/

52. https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2016/03/31/voices-why-do-my-people-become-
terrorists-foreign-soil/82462648/

53. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/05/01/islam-muslim-pew-research/2124941/

54. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2016/09/30

55. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2017/06/10/

56. http://www.usatoday.com/2016/10/morocco-test-time-for-islamic-pjd-party.html

57. https://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/news/world/2015/12/10/pumped-dry-morocco/7683

58. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/03/09/netherlands-election-muslims-geert-
wilders/98146882/

59. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-07-04-morocco-vote-reforms_n.htm

60. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2011-09-25/Morocco-protest/50546878/1

63