What to the Muslim is Internet search: Digital Borders as Barriers to Information Seeking

Abstract

In today's digital age, searching for information online is considered a ubiquitous task that can be accomplished in just a few moments using various web-based technologies. Yet, information seeking has geopolitical burdens for users who are racialized and marginalized by the nation-state and other structures of power. In our paper, we conducted a qualitative interview study with 15 Muslim participants, mostly of South Asian origin, living in the US with varying citizenship or (non)immigration status about their information needs and concerns around privacy as a Muslim, and the resulting restrictive patterns of information seeking on various Internet platforms. We argue that our findings on the barriers faced and strategies employed by Muslim residents toward information access suggest a broader pattern of digital manifestations of border imperialism. We posit that HCI researchers should pay attention to how “digital borders" have epistemic implications for people marginalized by geopolitical boundaries.