YASIR, et al. A Model of Communication to Empower Fisherman Community in Bengkalis Regency 447 Islamic Content on Malaysian TV: A Case Study of TV Al Hijrah 1 JULIANA ABDUL WAHAB, 2 ZATIL HIDAYAH ABDULLAH 1,2, School of Communication, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia email: 1 julia@usm.my ; 2 zatil.1109@gmail.com Abstract. Religion and media are converging and frequently becoming a subject matter for news content and popular entertainment programmes in television and flm, publishing, music as well as the new media. Religion, arguably has become part and parcel of the media environment today. In Malaysian context, during the millennium era, many locally produced ‘Islamic programmes’ started to gain popularity among Malaysian audience especially within the entertainment genre such as television drama. With the establishment of Malaysian frst Islamic free-to-air television, TV Al Hijrah in 2010, this paper aims to understand the nature of Islamic content available on the station. The preliminary fndings of this paper suggest that there are varieties of television programmes created and aired on TV Al Hijrah cutting across different genres meant for disseminating Islam as a way of life. Programmes available are mainly about showcasing the values of Islamic teaching and beliefs with the ultimate goal to highlight Islam as a beautiful and peaceful religion. Keywords: Islamic tv content, TV Al Hijrah, fqh broadcasting Introduction In contemporary setting, religion and issues concerning religion have become one of the most important topics that have resurfaced and gain prominence in the media around the globe. Since the September 11 tragedy, more coverage about religion were produced and circulated on various media platforms. Hoover (2008) observes that the interaction between media and religion is becoming more apparent as both media and religion have endured significant changes in the recent years. Hoover (2008) further argues, religion and media are converging and frequently becoming a subject matter for news content and popular entertainment programmes in television and film, publishing, music as well as the new media. Religion has arguably become part and parcel of the media environment today. In the media industry, there have been many changes in the development of technology which have resulted in the opening of different platforms that are able to disseminate media content and messages for the masses. The presence and discussion about religion on the media have become a common practice and are increasingly popular. In fact Hoover (2008) points out that there are more demands for religion materials on the media in the recent years partly due to the changes in the perspectives about the importance of religion-related issues among the masses. Islamophobia has been an issue ever since the September 11, 2001 attacks up until now. It has become increasingly prevalent in the wake of ISIS attacks all over the world – the ideology and activities of ISIS have been equated to Islam, and Muslims in general are being portrayed in a very negative light in the media. In May 2015, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong highlighted that Southeast Asia had emerged as a “key recruitment center” for ISIS. Prime Minister Lee highlighted that, “The threat is no longer over there; it is over here” (Samuel, 2016). At the regional level, Malaysia has taken up steps to participate in the ASEAN declarations in combating transnational crime and terrorism to ensure national and regional stabilities. The Malaysian government recognizes media as a powerful tool in disseminating ideas about religion, thus, in Received: August 10, 2017, Revision: October 04, 2017, Accepted: December 18, 2017 Print ISSN: 0215-8175; Online ISSN: 2303-2499. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.29313/mimbar.v33i2.3193.447-454 Accredited B based on the decree No.040/P/2014, valid on February, 18, 2014 until February, 18, 2019. Indexed by DOAJ, Sinta, IPI MIMBAR, Vol. 33, No. 2 nd (December, 2017) pp 447-454