Abstract
Muslim scholars must achieve different types of effort, all with integrity, to gain a high level of popularity and authority. Although some clerics gain this through relatively simple face-to-face religious functions, others achieve their popularity through extensive media coverage. Those who win the screen—more specifically, the mainstream terrestrial television—tend to significantly influence their audience. However, as the use of new technology has risen in Indonesia since 2010, a new wave of ulama (i.e., Islamic scholars) has harnessed the power of media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram and YouTube. One example is Khalid Basalamah, who launched a YouTube account in his own name in 2013; by June 2020, he had gained 1.4 million subscribers and uploaded 1,267 videos (Social Blade, 2020). Da’wah (the Islamic preaching) expressed through social media, especially YouTube, is an unprecedented religious trend in Indonesia that can propel new Islamic preachers to fame with millions of viewers. As no qualification standard to identify which figures have proper qualifications for their Islamic knowledge, anyone can start their da’wah video with a touch of sheikh appearance and answer viewers’ questions by cherrypicking dalil (scriptural evidence to support arguments).This thesis explores five Indonesian religious figures who use YouTube as their media platform for da’wah: Abdullah Gymnastiar, Abdul Somad, Adi Hidayat, Felix Siauw and Khalid Basalamah. The aim is to explore the extent to which the da’wah message is relevant to their level of authority, and to learn how they gained and maintain their popularity through their online preaching. Consequently, this digital religion phenomenon might create fundamental risks—especially if Indonesian YouTube viewers mainly seek religious answers for their daily lives from online preaching.
| Date of Award | 2023 |
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| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | Adam Possamai (Supervisor) |