Blog and the Transformation of Moslem Youth’s Fashion into Popular Culture: Study about www.fiminin.blogspot.com [*]
Soraya Fadhal Abdurahman** and Irna Nur Shahbanu
Department of Communication Sciences, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences,
University of Al Azhar Indonesia, Jl. Sisingamangaraja, Jakarta 12110
**penulis untuk korespondensi: soraya@uai.ac.id
Abstract
Blog emerge as a medium for urban young people, including for the Moslem. The Moslem girl fashion blog is a trend setter to influence the Moslem youth cyber community’s style. There are Moslem women fashions bombing in Indonesia in the last few years. Based on Kılıçbay and Binark article published in 2002,This study tried to find out how is the transformation of Moslem youth’s Fashion in blog into popular culture in Indonesia? How does blog play as medium for sharing ideas and creating new life style crossing transnational communities? Does the blog text still reflect and articulate the ‘spiritual’ aspect of Islamic faith in the middle of pressure of western fashion industry? Is the blog redefining the meaning of Hijab as popular culture?The study done in qualitative approach using interview method with theyoung Moslem women whom are fashion blogger in Jakarta and West Java. The research finding shows that the creativities of Moslem youth meet new lively representations in new media. They create a new culture by the blog’s text. There are shifting meanings of the practice of youth Moslem’s wear due to the articulation of Islamic faith into popular culture. Their creations based on modern religious paradigm, local context’s taste and the global passion. The blog provide a space to shape religious sentiment. They become designer for the transformation of Moslem youth’s fashion. They express their ideas to virtual transnational communities by conceptualizing, collaborating, producing, sharing, mobilizing, and exhibiting their creative works, ideology and dreams. They declare unique and specific identity of urban Moslem youth fashion into and as a ‘normal’ trend. The blogger create the new fashion as the resistance of mainstream fashion industry’s values. This is the politic of lifestyle. The blog’s messages become the engine of Moslem.
Keywords – Blog, Moslem Youth, Fashion, Popular Culture
[*] Part of this paper had been presented in IAMCR 2011 ISTANBUL, in The Media and Religion Section, at Kadir Has University in Istanbul, Turkey, 13-17 July, 2011