Thread by @luminatus1

For me though, as I sat there aghast, watching this appalling and gross abuse of media power, my mind was reeling from the craftsmanship at work here. Maybe because the literary realm and the power of words is my field, 

islam21c.com/politics/the-p…

saw before me an artistic piece rich with persuasive conventions, suggestive language, rhetorical techniques, sensory devices and strategic cinematography all efficiently – oh so efficiently, no second to waste; no words allowed that didn’t pull their weight – pushing an agenda

– oh so efficiently, no second to waste; no words allowed that didn’t pull their weight – pushing an agenda of moral panic, fear mongering, & purposeful damage to social &community cohesion, reinforcing stereotypes & prejudices about Muslim communities.[3]

This was a lesson on using language, structure and tone to create a world of pure imagination,
persuading the audience it was true, and rallying troops for a daunting end.

As the introductory message, riddled with negative, fear-inducing lexis, is set forth, Phillips leaves the viewers with a hankering suspicion that they may be wrong; that the truth of the matter is that this is not in fact the case.

We then have David Cameron, our Prime Minister, the leader of this nation, in his famous speech offering support to those ‘reforming, moderate voices’ that want to ‘reclaim their religion’. And then Phillips asks:

I would never have thought that to question something David Cameron had said would be to paint Muslims in an even worse light.

Apparently I was wrong. Phillips’ leading question here, typical of persuasive & suggestive speech, 

1min 30secs drawn dividing line
'Us & Them'

As if to demonstrate his credentials and the subsequent credibility of the documentary he gives us a touching story of how his work has contributed to the invention of the word ‘Islamophobia’ how he
must be an objective, honest, unbiased, observer, here to deliver facts

how he therefore must be an objective, honest, unbiased, observer, here to deliver facts on ‘the results of a unique new survey [which] reveal how British Muslims themselves answer these questions’.

‘Our findings will shock many’, he says..

in case you couldn’t guess from my leading question: David Cameron is wrong.
He suggests that this survey illustrates the ‘looming threat to our very way of life’. A survey on the opinion of British Muslims bears the signs

TWO MINS into documentary
scene is set by language, power of words,
framing a whole community by THOUGHTS of
those who took part in a survey

ex-EHRC Chair carries weight, authority

how is different from Tommy Robinson-style bashing a whole community ?

#thoughtcrime

Suffice to say: through use of language & linguistic techniques, through emphasis, through effective pauses, through the very choice of words,

Phillips portrays an image of a villainous, threatening band of terrorists living among us.

The best horror film begins on a presumption of normalcy: an ordinary home, a nice street, friendly neighbours. It is when this is inverted and subverted that we feel the most fear. You would expect to find horror at a haunted house, so what you get was coming to you

Read: this survey is true because what your Muslim colleagues or servicemen tell you are lies, the enemy lives among you. These friendly butchers aren’t sharing their innermost thoughts.

His reference to Luton was distanced. It therefore follows that his use of indicative noun should also be the distanced ‘there’.

However he opts for ‘here’. Why? As an isolated occasion, this means nothing.

But following the ‘looming’ ‘threat’ of deceiving Muslims,

Wherever you are, if you are watching this, they are ‘here’ in your vicinity.

He assures the viewers he knows ‘good’ British Muslims exist and gives a cursory nod at Nadia Hussain

before immediately cutting to a forbidding and terrifying memory of a great tragedy in Britain,

the culprits of which came from ‘just fifteen minutes away’. Again, imminence and proximity.

Not what they say, not what they claim to be like, but what they really think, what they are really like. Continually drawing parallels with the good exterior and the contrasting evil reality.

Nadia vs. Terrorists.

What British Muslims say vs. What British Muslims think.

Solely the depiction of statistics on beliefs held by British Muslims regarding homosexuality, suicide bombing, violence, attitudes towards women, perpetuated this notion. Figures such as the 4% of British Muslims

Centre Stage

I wonder what the question was for 100,000 Muslims to have allowed themselves to be depicted as such barbarians.

“Britain’s political elite, both left and right, have preferred to believe that only a very small number of Britain’s Muslims sympathise with Islamist terrorism”, Phillips says in an almost mocking tone.

Disheartening words.
Not just for the non-Muslim viewership but for the Muslims who spend every day working hard to dispel the myth of a brutal Islām, who work hard every day to demonstrate the beauty of Islām, who step outside identifiably Muslim

If you watched this and came away with a negative perception of your British Muslim neighbours, watch it again.

This time look out for the narrative being pushed.

I have only covered 10 minutes of the documentary. There is so much more to be said.

Cinematography

The directors of this documentary must have had fun. They tried their hand at an eerie reconstruction straight out of Watchdog.

I can honestly say I feared for the lady’s life and well-being as she walked in a suspect part of the neighbourhood.

This is the only Muslim interviewee the viewers see.

Thank you directors, for that choice selection of cast and setting to represent every British Muslim interviewed.

Every piece of data you mention will be associated with this gentleman who lives in a bleak house

Other spells of genius include a voice over of:

– “underneath these surface attitudes the trends are far less encouraging for those who believe in integration” accompanying an image of said Muslim man.

– “The survey is showing us the emergences of […] a nation within the nation, where many hold different values of behaviour from the majority” accompanying a shot of a marketplace frequented by Muslim shoppers.

Structure

The documentary “What British Muslims Really Think” has proven itself an example of expert movie making.

When I was 12 years old learning about Nazi propaganda and its power over the German people

After almost an hour of subliminal messages, not-so-subtle discrimination and incessant fear-mongering,

Phillips reviews the threat to Britain. “There are now more than 3 million Muslims in Britain

Phillips reviews the threat to Britain. “There are now more than 3 million Muslims in Britain […] Britain faces a huge challenge.” He asks: “What are we going to do about it?”

He goes on to say,

The following words brought a chill to my bones:

Thank you for encouraging EDL Jack and Racist Jill to take matters into their own handd and do away with the live and let live philosophy.

Thank you for pushing out an hour long documentary on the evils of what you believe Muslims think ‘beneath the surface’

For a moment I feared for all my family members and all the innocent and vulnerable Muslims whom your words will have an impact on.

As mentioned earlier. I am not here to contest the accuracy of results or methodology.

I write as a viewer and of the destruction this programme '

Time for accurate research not witch hunts or trials by media

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