Do people still read?
why I'm starting a newsletter
Salam, Welcome.
I’ve been juggling with the idea of starting a newsletter for several months, and the question that kept stopping me was “Does anyone even read anymore?”
But then I realized that to be honest, it doesn’t matter what the answer is. There are so many things that need to be read in life, and even the most profound thing I could ever write is never going to be that necessary of a read.
So I decided to write regardless, and hope those who come across my words and stories can benefit in a positive way somehow. I truly believe that writing and reading is powerful and my past (and hopefully future) work is important.
For the sake of answering the question though, I think the answer is, "It depends on what’s written.” I know Muslims are still reading the Quran. Fiction lovers are still reading novels. Anyone on social media is reading long TikTok and Instagram captions detailing a recipe or some local aggregated news.
Most people — specifically younger generations — aren’t fully reading news articles by mainstream U.S. outlets anymore. One reason is because our generation grew up with parents consuming news overseas in their native language, and did not trust this country’s media. Muslims and Arabs have been dehumanized through inaccurate media coverage in the last two decades, and although there’s been some progress, recent U.S. coverage on Gaza and Palestine has been pretty bad.
Through TikTok and Instagram, we’re seeing people go directly to the sources of information rather than read filtered, summarized and sometimes mischaracterized by reporters here.
People are becoming much more selective with what they’re reading, and what news they’re sharing.
Some friends and family members who don’t normally read my articles, read my op-ed in Al-Jazeera. My brother whose only interaction with anything I’ve written is a “thumbs up” emoji, read every word and called me with his thoughts and comments.
These same friends and family (majority Muslim) also read my piece covering how Americans were opting out of this presidential election, and how Ramadan was full of sorrow this year with the genocide in Gaza on the forefront of most people’s minds.
I think most people in the communities I belong to want to read honest stories that are reflective of their current state of mind and the questions they are navigating on a daily basis. We want to read and consume content that is relevant to our experiences.
We latch on to the bare minimum of representation displayed before us on TV and positions of influence and power, asking to be seen and pleading to be heard. We share the “inshallah” that the president uses or an artist includes in a thousand WhatsApp group chats.
I do think media, including news, can do a much better job at covering our communities to provide more accurate representation and stories of our upbringing and challenges.
With this newsletter, I’m optimistic that I could create a space that nurtures conversations on the Muslim American experience and brings attention to news, events and stories that we should be paying attention to.
Thank you for reading, and if you’re interested in navigating this with me, subscribe (free or paid) by signing up with your email. I hope anything I share resonates with you or sparks something in you.