[Mozlem]

I'm planning on watching this, how about you guys?

http://tlc.howstuffw...american-muslim

[hijabihoodlum]

Mozlem, on 08 November 2011 - 10:22 AM, said:

I'm planning on watching this, how about you guys?

http://tlc.howstuffw...american-muslim

i don't have cable. do you know of a way to watch it online? kinda wanna see at least the first episode.

[meraj]

as salaamu alaikum,

it doesnt look like TLC puts full episodes online at this time. im sure it'll get spread around after it broadcasts.

meraj

[BaronChairman]

I'll be glued to my TV to watch!

[ChotooMotoo]

Blue_Phoenix, on 09 November 2011 - 08:50 AM, said:

I'll be glued to my TV to watch!

Be careful. Radiation from the TV and the chemicals in super glue strong enough to attach you to the TV could have adverse effects on your health. and appearance.

[BaronChairman]

ChotooMotoo, on 09 November 2011 - 12:45 PM, said:

Be careful. Radiation from the TV and the chemicals in super glue strong enough to attach you to the TV could have adverse effects on your health. and appearance.

That explains a lot...

[Scarfy]

ChotooMotoo, on 09 November 2011 - 12:45 PM, said:

Be careful. Radiation from the TV and the chemicals in super glue strong enough to attach you to the TV could have adverse effects on your health. and appearance.

Get back to work

[BaronChairman]

Well, it's decent. I'm not quite captivated yet. The most engaging storyline so far is the one where the Catholic converts to Islam to earn her father's blessing. There are hints that he converted just to marry her, and that really isn't going about conversion the right way.

[Purple_alien]

I don't watch reality TV. So I had no intention of watching this one. BUT if my FB newsfeed is any indication, this show is the worst show EVER. lol. People were hating on it so hard! Some compared it to the Jersey Shore. Chuckle-worthy at best.

[meraj]

as salaamu alaikum,

i dont think it was terrible, but there were some things that could have been done differently. the biggest thing i felt was that the premise and title of the show were misleading. the show does not depict a cross-section of all muslims in america, not by a long shot. but for the specific facets of muslims in america they choose to depict, they are not wholly unfair or dishonest in the way they portray them. i'm lazy to type out the rest of my thoughts, but these two articles pretty much capture how i feel:

http://growmama.com/...eality-tv-show/
http://www.religiond...american_islam/

that said, i think muslims could also stand to take a step back and tone down the high expectations. at the end of the day, it's a reality show. sure, i think they definitely fumbled the packaging and presentation, but it's also only the first episode. the series is supposed to get deeper into the lives of the families on the show, so i think it's worth it to just wait and see.

meraj

[meraj]

as salaamu alaikum,

another very pertinent remark i read from someone on facebook was that as muslims, we can throw a fit about others telling their version of our narrative all we want, but if we don't like it, theres no reason we shouldnt do it ourselves. we've invested a lot of time and resources into producing doctors and engineers, which is great mashallah. some of the best out there. but we need writers, filmmakers, journalists who are equally passionate and skilled. it wont happen overnight, but without a drastic shift in our priorities and a departure from the victim mentality, it isnt likely to happen at all.

Zarqa Nawaz got a lot of criticism for "Little Mosque on the Prairie" when it first premiered. but the show she created was the first of its kind. making it a reality was nothing short of monumental for muslims in the media. and that was a work of fiction. some Muslims are getting upset about a "reality" show for showing things that actually exist. sure, it's not an expose of all muslims in america. but it's not the first, nor the last. the question is, who will produce the next one?

meraj

[ChotooMotoo]

The title is provocative and meant to bring in audiences, but is misleading. I don't have a problem with people being Shia. I'm actually kind of glad that all the Muslims aren't lilly white, because that is representative of the kind of Muslims and the spectrum of religious practice that people do in this country. It's going to scare the *@() out of some people that not all Muslims are so easily identifiable, and indeed that goth chick with eyebrow piercings sitting next to you on the bus may well be Muslim. I appreciated one comment in the first episode that converts are set on a pedestal, that if you convert it means you have to practice your religion "right" but nobody puts that kind of emphasis on born Muslims. I think it probably will address a lot of different issues in the course of the show, but maybe not the direct documentary type addressing of issues that some people would prefer. I certainly have some mixed feelings about it, but that's probably a good thing.

[Purple_alien]

Just be ready for my youtube show. It's going to be awesome. No title, or filming schedule, but trust me, it's gonna be amazing.

[heba]

why is everyone hating on this show cuz its only showing arabs?

first of all, no one else is as classless as lebs from dearborn to do a reality show. would any of your desi families be part of this? HELL NO. im getting annoyed with all the non arabs saying this LYK OMG SHUD BE CALLED SHI3A LEBS FROM DEARBORN LOLZZZ..

second of all..its a reality show. aka..its TV. they go for whats most entertaining. theres a show about a family with 20 kids and a show about gypsy weddings on tlc...what do people expect???? would a show about a religious saudi family where everyone is segregated and people eat drink pray all day be entertaining and bring in ratings? nope. it wont. would a show about loud obnoxious classless arabs who- GASP- drink and party and have tattoos be entertaining? sure will.

[ChotooMotoo]

heba, on 14 November 2011 - 09:13 PM, said:

why is everyone hating on this show cuz its only showing arabs?

first of all, no one else is as classless as lebs from dearborn to do a reality show.

So you're saying that we shouldn't expect to see any Iraqi's on the show?

Quote

theres a show about a family with 20 kids and a show about gypsy weddings on tlc...

and the people who have unprotected sex but don't figure out they got pregnant until the baby comes out (that's some kind of crazy constipation) and dwarf doctors, a woman with 8 kids whose husband left her because she's crazy and her nervous breakdown occurred on TV, and people parading their 6 year olds like playboy bunnies, people with no legs, a man with warts that look like trees growing from his fingers, a fundamentalist Mormon family with a bajillion kids from many women but only one father... what am I missing?

Quote

would a show about loud obnoxious classless arabs who- GASP- drink and party and have tattoos be entertaining? sure will.

[displaced]

thought it was really boring. won't be watching it again..

[BaronChairman]

Why are people making such a big deal about them being Shia?

[Purple_alien]

Okay, so last night I decided to see what the buzz was really about. displaced is right: It is boring. I wasted 15 minutes of my life (not consecutive thankfully) watching it. I can see why people are upset; some of what was said was like- freal? But at the same time, there are Muslims like that in all communities.
So in conclusion, I am serious. This black friday, I am buying a quality video camera thing to start filming.
And Heba- I was hating because they aren't Me and My Gang- Ooh! I should write Rascal Flatts and get permission to call my show that. Hmmm...

[displaced]

Purple_alien, on 15 November 2011 - 08:04 AM, said:

Okay, so last night I decided to see what the buzz was really about. displaced is right: It is boring. I wasted 15 minutes of my life (not consecutive thankfully) watching it. I can see why people are upset; some of what was said was like- freal? But at the same time, there are Muslims like that in all communities.
So in conclusion, I am serious. This black friday, I am buying a quality video camera thing to start filming.
And Heba- I was hating because they aren't Me and My Gang- Ooh! I should write Rascal Flatts and get permission to call my show that. Hmmm...

there was no shibshib throwing for god's sake. what kind of arabs are those?

[meraj]

as salaamu alaikum,

i'm still in the middle of watching this... but here is an interview with one of the cast members of the show, along with Azhar Usman. they address some of the issues people have had with the show.




meraj