UMD Theses and Dissertations

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/3

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a given thesis/dissertation in DRUM.

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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2013 - 20142

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    Elements of Disbelief: A Case Study of 9/11 Truthers and the Persistence of Misinformation in the Digital Age
    (2014) McIntyre, James Jon; Chinoy, Ira H; Journalism; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This thesis examines the essential question: "Do facts matter?" By analyzing the persistence of false beliefs surrounding the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon and the resiliency of alternative counterfactual narratives, this thesis attempts to bring about a better understanding of why myths and misinformation persist so long after clear evidence and common sense would seem to discredit them. The perspective includes the author's personal experience as inadvertent grist for the mill of conspiracy theorists, those who call themselves "9/11 truthers." While it has certainly always been the case that false beliefs can become commonly held misconceptions, this thesis will argue that the Internet has served as a "force-multiplier," giving some nonsensical beliefs virtual eternal life. But the Internet also can, and often does, serve a corrective function, through crowd-sourcing and fact-checking. Still, the question of the efficacy and persuasiveness of fact-based reporting is paramount if one believes a healthy and functioning democracy depends on a well-informed citizenry, and that journalists play a vital, sometimes unique, role in informing the public.
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    Service, Sacrifice, and Citizenship: The Experiences of Muslims Serving in the U.S. Military
    (2013) Sandhoff, Michelle; Segal, David R; Sociology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The events of 9/11 and the subsequent "War on Terror" activated long standing stereotypes in the United States that portrayed Muslims as fundamentally different from other Americans. In this project, I interview 15 Muslims who have served in the U.S. military since 9/11 to determine if and how the activation of this us/them boundary shaped their military experiences. I find that the us/them atmosphere that characterizes civilian discourse about Muslims is present in the military. However, most of my respondents felt that it had little practical effect on them. I discuss this in terms of the presence but irrelevance of this boundary. I connect this finding to the history of racial integration in the U.S. military, arguing that characteristics of the military, including an emphasis on policies of equal opportunity, the ability to compel certain behaviors, and the nature of military service, which promotes close contact among diverse individuals, can mitigate some of the negatives effects of being othered. While most of my respondents had positive experiences, in some units the us/them discourse was exacerbated, creating atmospheres of distrust and suspicion which led to negative outcomes including harassment, accusations, and decisions by Muslim service members to leave the military. A theme that emerged in exploring this dichotomy of experience among my respondents was the role of leadership. Leadership that saw value in diversity and was invested in supporting it, mitigated negative effects of othering, making this an irrelevant frame. However, leadership that repeated stereotypes or fears reinforced this tension, creating toxic environments in which Muslim service members felt excluded. I began this project with the expectation that citizenship would be a central narrative for Muslim service members, as it was for Japanese Americans in World War II. However, the respondents in my sample rarely use their military service to directly make claims on citizenship. They do however express institutional motivations to serve and engage in dialogue, bridge building, and other aspects of everyday citizenship.