MANUFACTURING ISLAMOPHOBIA:

MEDIA, REPRESENTATION AND THE DUTCH PUBLIC SPHERE (PANEL TALK)

Twenty-five years after 9/11, how we talk about Islam and Muslims in the Netherlands is still shaped by the media narratives that emerged in its aftermath. News coverage, political debate and popular culture have played a powerful role in defining who is seen as a threat, who belongs and whose voice is heard. As part of Manufacturing Consent, LAB111 brings together historian and author Nadia Bouras, historian and journalist Lotfi El Hamidi, and a third speaker (to be announced) for a panel discussion on the production and representation of Islamophobia in Dutch media since 9/11.

The panel will look at how representations of Islam and Muslims have shifted over the past twenty-five years, the political and cultural forces behind those shifts, and the consequences of narratives that have repeatedly framed Muslims through questions of security, integration and threat. It will also consider the ways these narratives have been challenged, who gets to shape representations of Muslim life in the Netherlands, and whether the media landscape is genuinely changing today.

About the speakers:

Nadia Bouras is a Dutch historian, author and Assistant Professor at Leiden University, specialising in the modern history of Morocco and Moroccan migration to Europe. Her research focuses on migration, identity, transnationalism, and the inclusion and exclusion of migrants and their descendants. She is also affiliated with the Netherlands Institute Morocco (NIMAR) in Rabat. Bouras is the author of Het land van herkomst and Een klas apart, and regularly contributes to public debates on migration, diversity and contemporary Morocco. She is a columnist for OneWorld.

Lotfi El Hamidi is a historian and journalist. He has worked for NRC and is currently an editor at De Groene Amsterdammer. His publications include Generatie 9/11. Migratie, diaspora en identiteit (2022), which was nominated for the PrinsjesBoekenprijs, and Stakkers en wolven. In de schaduw van Gaza (2026).

A third speaker will be announced soon.

Please note that this panel talk will be presented in English.