The American actor, TV host, writer and producer, Steve Harvey, spoke about the true essence of Islam, debunking media narratives that link the religion to terrorism.
Steve Harvey is a renowned comedian and a TV host. His most popular talk shows include “The Steve Harvey Show” and “Steve.” He is the author of some of the best-selling self-help books, such as “Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man” and “Act like a Success, Think like a Success.”
US Media Polarization
Speaking in an episode titled “Do Headlines Cause Hate?” Steve Harvey addressed the negative portrayal of Islam and Muslims in the US media for political purposes.
“We in this country are guided by the media and our politicians. They take this polarizing, anything that is polarizing, to pick a side and they have chosen Islam and Muslims as a scapegoat in this new election. It’s all over everything. They have chosen it as a way to polarize,” he said.
Harvey revealed the main reasons behind these negative stereotypes of Muslims in the US. “Our country operates off of fear. It’s the fear of the economy crash, fear of death, fear of disease,” he noted.
Debunking False Narrative
The American actor and TV host explained how false narratives about Islam spread through media platforms. “So now, here what happens. Every single story they can to get our eyeball to a TV set like you said earlier. It’s about some wayward Muslim who is in a sect who has taken this beautiful faith and twisted it,” Harvey said.
He also stressed that Islam is a peaceful religion and that the actions of some extremists do not represent the beliefs and practices of true Muslims. “Cause nowhere in the Quran does it say to do any of this stuff. It don’t say shoot nobody, it don’t say crash no plane, it don’t say nothing,” Harvey said.
