Religious Studies of the Media

Religious Studies of the Media

The Role of Islamic Ethics in Media and Social Media Policymaking

Document Type : Original Article

Author
zeynab darvishi
Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Ahv.C., Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran
10.22034/jmrs.2026.575458.1249
Abstract
In the contemporary world, media and social media play a pivotal role in shaping public opinion, cultural identity, and social behavior. At the same time, the proliferation of challenges such as misinformation, privacy violations, verbal violence, and threats to cultural identity has heightened the need for credible ethical frameworks. By emphasizing comprehensive principles such as human dignity, honesty, justice, responsibility, enjoining good, verification, tolerance, avoidance of intrusion and backbiting, integrity, authenticity, resilience, and virtue-centeredness, Islamic ethics offers significant theoretical and practical potential for guiding media policymaking. This study aims to explain the foundations of Islamic ethics and examine their role in policymaking for media and social media. Its central question is: How can the principles of Islamic ethics be applied as a practical framework in the media policymaking process? The study employs a descriptive-analytical method. Data were collected through library research, including an examination of religious texts, the Qur’an, Islamic traditions, classical works on ethics, and cultural policy documents. The findings indicate that the fundamental principles of Islamic ethics can be translated into operational rules for media regulation. Their application can enhance public trust, protect users’ privacy, reduce communication-related misconduct, and promote communicative justice on social media. These findings demonstrate that integrating the Islamic value system with contemporary approaches to media governance can provide an effective means of addressing the ethical challenges of the digital age.
Keywords
Islamic ethics
media policymaking
social networks
human dignity
justice
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Religious Studies of the Media
Volume 7, Issue 28
Winter 2026
Pages 7-37