A/HRC/6/6 page 9 of the Manichean Cold War-type of ideology of a clash of civilizations and religions - of “us against them”, “enlightenment against darkness”, “civilization against barbarism” - which is dominant in several political, intellectual and media circles. The bottom line of this dogma is the relentless characterization and portrayal of Islam as possessing values that are fundamentally opposed to those of Western civilization which is postulated as rooted in Christianity. 22. In his previous reports, the Special Rapporteur focused on two factors that depict the rise of Islamophobia: the intellectual legitimization of hostility towards Islam and its followers and the political tolerance of such hostility in many countries (see E/CN.4/2004/19 and E/CN.4/2005/18/Add.4, para. 20). These two processes pose a direct threat not only to the safeguard of rights of Muslim individuals, but also to the very democratic foundations of many societies. 2. Intellectual legitimization of Islamophobia 23. The ideological dimension of Islamophobia is directly connected to its intellectual legitimization as currently reflected in a number of so-called intellectuals and political and social commentators that put forward openly Islamophobic statements, including explicit defamation of Islam. In particular, one may note that a number of Islamophobic statements have been falsely claimed to be scientific or scholarly, in order to give intellectual clout to arguments that link Islam to violence and terrorism. Furthermore, the manipulation and selective quoting of sacred texts, in particular the Koran, as a means to deceptively argue that these texts show the violent nature of Islam has become current practice. 24. The process of intellectual legitimization of Islamophobia also occurs in the media. Despite noteworthy counter examples, the Special Rapporteur observes that media reports on issues directly or indirectly related to Islam tend to reinforce prejudices and stereotypes. The way in which the events of 11 September 2001 were treated by news providers did much harm to the image of Arabs and Muslims and in many cases encouraged the rise in Islamophobia. Some media played considerably on the supposed feelings of the general public, reawakening old fears based either on ignorance or on a repressed crusading mentality that still persists in certain quarters. 25. Rather than an isolated segment of society, the media are directly influenced by the existing ideological and sociocultural milieu. Thus, they reflect existing trends and beliefs about Islam that are already widespread in society. Furthermore, the media often reinforce these trends by the selective repetition of news that link Islam and violence and the omission of references to positive activities and good practices sponsored by Muslim communities; the constant focus on leaders legitimizing political violence by selective quotations of Islam; and the stereotyping of Muslim women as discriminated against by essence regardless of the diversity of their situation in Muslim countries. 3. Political tolerance to Islamophobia 26. The second element in the rise of Islamophobia, political tolerance of hostility and discrimination against Muslims, has gained further ground since the Special Rapporteur last reported on this issue. We are currently witnessing an ongoing rise of political parties and social movements that are openly Islamophobic and sponsor racist and xenophobic policies.