Shoebat is even more extreme than his fellow ex-Muslims. His newfound Christian beliefs hold that during the “end times” of biblical prophecy, Muslims will fight alongside Satan on earth. Despite these outlandish claims (or perhaps because of them), he is enthusiastically promoted by his colleagues in the Islamophobic network. Gaffney gushed, “In the twenty-five years I have been in Washington I have never heard anything so extraordinary and the truth told so eloquently by someone like this.” In 2011, he was paid five thousand dollars by the Department of Homeland Security to spout his nonsense at a South Dakota law enforcement conference.

QUESTION: Does shock value or extremity of claims actually increase perceived credibility in Islamophobic networks, or are these figures promoted for other strategic reasons?

Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politi…, loc. 556