Rasha Abdulla
Biographic Data
| ID | 343391 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Rasha Abdulla |
| GIVEN NAMES | Rasha |
| FAMILY NAME | Abdulla |
| SIGNATURE | ABDULLA R |
| AFFILIATIONS | American University in Cairo |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-2925-2036 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 7 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 22 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 7 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2005 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Social Media, the Public Sphere, and Public Space in Authoritarian Settings
Taking Egypt as a case study, this article examines the relationship between social media and Habermas' public sphere and public space in less democratic settings. Using a survey of Tahrir Square protesters and process tracing to examine 18 years of social media use, the article proposes a theoretical model highlighting the role of social media in carving out an eventful public sphere, despite the lack of public space to promote communicative act…
Facebook polls as proto-democratic instruments in the Egyptian revolution
This article examines the dynamics of political participation on the ‘We Are All Khaled Said’ Facebook page, which hosted the call for Egypt’s 25 January 2011 revolution. It shows that the page served as a proto-democratic instrument by introducing both qualitative and quantitative polls and following up with actions based on majority opinion. This argument is developed through an analysis of discussion threads and polls from the page, selected f…
Toward a Pan-cultural Typology of Deception Motives
Based on truth-default theory, this research examined accounts of recalled deception to develop a list of deception motives that are general across cultures. Participants from Egypt (N = 29), Guatemala (N = 118), Pakistan (N = 51), Saudi Arabia (N = 169), and the United States (N = 81) were asked, open-ended, to describe an instance of deception or lying either from the perspective of the liar or the target. These descriptions were used to refine…
Protest leadership in the age of social media
This article challenges the idea that social media protest mobilization and communication are primarily propelled by the self-motivated sharing of ideas, plans, images, and resources. It shows that leadership plays a vital role in steering popular contention on key social platforms. This argument is developed through a detailed case study on the interaction between the administrators and users of the Kullena Khaled Said Facebook page, the most po…
Data critique and analytical opportunities for very large Facebook Pages
This paper discusses the empirical, Application Programming Interface (API)-based analysis of very large Facebook Pages. Looking in detail at the technical characteristics, conventions, and peculiarities of Facebook’s architecture and data interface, we argue that such technical fieldwork is essential to data-driven research, both as a crucial form of data critique and as a way to identify analytical opportunities. Using the “We are all Khaled Sa…
Islam, Jihad, and Terrorism in Post-9/11 Arabic Discussion Boards
This study analyzed the contents of three of the most popular Arabic-language online message boards regarding the attacks of September 11, 2001 on the United States. Although terrorists claimed that the attacks were committed in the name of Islam, those who posted messages on all three forums rejected this claim. More than 43% of the messages condemned the attacks as a criminal act of terrorism that contradicts the core teachings of Islam. Some 3…
Taking the e-train
Like many other countries in the Arab world, Egypt is trying to harness the internet as a powerful new medium to bridge the digital divide. This article starts by tracing the development of broadcast media technologies in Egypt, arguing that Egypt has historically made use of its position as a leader of media content in the Arab world to enhance development and culture as well as to advance the government’s political agenda. The article pays spec…
Data critique and analytical opportunities for very large Facebook Pages
This paper discusses the empirical, Application Programming Interface (API)-based analysis of very large Facebook Pages. Looking in detail at the technical characteristics, conventions, and peculiarities of Facebook’s architecture and data interface, we argue that such technical fieldwork is essential to data-driven research, both as a crucial form of data critique and as a way to identify analytical opportunities. Using the “We are all Khaled Sa…
Islam, Jihad, and Terrorism in Post-9/11 Arabic Discussion Boards
This study analyzed the contents of three of the most popular Arabic-language online message boards regarding the attacks of September 11, 2001 on the United States. Although terrorists claimed that the attacks were committed in the name of Islam, those who posted messages on all three forums rejected this claim. More than 43% of the messages condemned the attacks as a criminal act of terrorism that contradicts the core teachings of Islam. Some 3…
Social Media, the Public Sphere, and Public Space in Authoritarian Settings
Taking Egypt as a case study, this article examines the relationship between social media and Habermas' public sphere and public space in less democratic settings. Using a survey of Tahrir Square protesters and process tracing to examine 18 years of social media use, the article proposes a theoretical model highlighting the role of social media in carving out an eventful public sphere, despite the lack of public space to promote communicative act…
Facebook polls as proto-democratic instruments in the Egyptian revolution
This article examines the dynamics of political participation on the ‘We Are All Khaled Said’ Facebook page, which hosted the call for Egypt’s 25 January 2011 revolution. It shows that the page served as a proto-democratic instrument by introducing both qualitative and quantitative polls and following up with actions based on majority opinion. This argument is developed through an analysis of discussion threads and polls from the page, selected f…
Taking the e-train
Like many other countries in the Arab world, Egypt is trying to harness the internet as a powerful new medium to bridge the digital divide. This article starts by tracing the development of broadcast media technologies in Egypt, arguing that Egypt has historically made use of its position as a leader of media content in the Arab world to enhance development and culture as well as to advance the government’s political agenda. The article pays spec…
Taking the e-train
Like many other countries in the Arab world, Egypt is trying to harness the internet as a powerful new medium to bridge the digital divide. This article starts by tracing the development of broadcast media technologies in Egypt, arguing that Egypt has historically made use of its position as a leader of media content in the Arab world to enhance development and culture as well as to advance the government’s political agenda. The article pays spec…
Islam, Jihad, and Terrorism in Post-9/11 Arabic Discussion Boards
This study analyzed the contents of three of the most popular Arabic-language online message boards regarding the attacks of September 11, 2001 on the United States. Although terrorists claimed that the attacks were committed in the name of Islam, those who posted messages on all three forums rejected this claim. More than 43% of the messages condemned the attacks as a criminal act of terrorism that contradicts the core teachings of Islam. Some 3…
Data critique and analytical opportunities for very large Facebook Pages
This paper discusses the empirical, Application Programming Interface (API)-based analysis of very large Facebook Pages. Looking in detail at the technical characteristics, conventions, and peculiarities of Facebook’s architecture and data interface, we argue that such technical fieldwork is essential to data-driven research, both as a crucial form of data critique and as a way to identify analytical opportunities. Using the “We are all Khaled Sa…
Toward a Pan-cultural Typology of Deception Motives
Based on truth-default theory, this research examined accounts of recalled deception to develop a list of deception motives that are general across cultures. Participants from Egypt (N = 29), Guatemala (N = 118), Pakistan (N = 51), Saudi Arabia (N = 169), and the United States (N = 81) were asked, open-ended, to describe an instance of deception or lying either from the perspective of the liar or the target. These descriptions were used to refine…
Protest leadership in the age of social media
This article challenges the idea that social media protest mobilization and communication are primarily propelled by the self-motivated sharing of ideas, plans, images, and resources. It shows that leadership plays a vital role in steering popular contention on key social platforms. This argument is developed through a detailed case study on the interaction between the administrators and users of the Kullena Khaled Said Facebook page, the most po…
Facebook polls as proto-democratic instruments in the Egyptian revolution
This article examines the dynamics of political participation on the ‘We Are All Khaled Said’ Facebook page, which hosted the call for Egypt’s 25 January 2011 revolution. It shows that the page served as a proto-democratic instrument by introducing both qualitative and quantitative polls and following up with actions based on majority opinion. This argument is developed through an analysis of discussion threads and polls from the page, selected f…
Social Media, the Public Sphere, and Public Space in Authoritarian Settings
Taking Egypt as a case study, this article examines the relationship between social media and Habermas' public sphere and public space in less democratic settings. Using a survey of Tahrir Square protesters and process tracing to examine 18 years of social media use, the article proposes a theoretical model highlighting the role of social media in carving out an eventful public sphere, despite the lack of public space to promote communicative act…
Social Media and Politics (6 works) · Computer Science (5 works) · Political science (5 works) · Sociology (5 works) · Law (4 works) · Politics (4 works) · Democracy (3 works) · Law (3 works) · Media studies (3 works) · Public relations (3 works)