Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research (ASSEHR), volume 129 Third International Conference on Social and Political Sciences (ICSPS 2017) “DA‘WATAINMENT” AND COMMERCIAL DISPLAY IN LIVE PROGRAM “DAMAI INDONESIAKU” Yusron Razak, Ilham Mundzir, Izza Rohman, and Ervan Nurtawab UIN Jakarta Abstract- This article discusses the This research focuses on how Islamic commercial orientations that have emerged in the so- messages are constructed and reconstructed in the called “da‘watainment” broadcasted on television. It public media and how they conform to the market has been accepted that the mainstream media such as logic. It seeks to figure out whether the media is television plays a pivotal role in mainstreaming public sincere enough in producing its da‘wa program to opinion. In this study, therefore, we state that a meet the spiritual and social needs of the audience da‘watainment producer predominantly determines or it has used religious issues mainly as a means to the agenda setting in how the audiences would regard promote and legitimize the commercial goods they two broadcasted displays, i.e., a da‘wa content and advertise. commercial displays, as having the same important values. What the preacher displays during their It has been accepted that television, one of the mainstream media, plays a pivotal role in performance is greatly in the producer setting and is mainstreaming public opinion. Therefore, there have to be socially and commercially acceptable. In our been efforts to use television as a means of religious participatory research in Live Program Damai proselytization. However, as television has been Indonesiaku (DI), we find that both a dakwah content seen as an effective means of commercial and a product sale indicate a mutual relationship in advertisement, religious proselytization on how the broadcasted program reflects a contestation television might have to go hand in hand with the between a commercial-oriented media and selected commercial orientation of a television station. This preachers to speak for Islam. The media is the field has helped what we call “da‘watainment” emerge on where religious authority has been challenged in the television, i.e., televised Islamic proselytization way that an Islamic preacher is increasingly bound to with commercial side. The producer of a da‘wa conform with the market logic. In short, the DI show can predominantly determine the agenda program has been equally shared as the religious setting to have the audience regard both the da‘wa gathering and at the same time market for product content and the commercial displays of the program sales. as having the same important values. What the preacher displays during their performance on the Keyword: Islamic preacher, da‘watainment, product show is greatly in the producer setting and is to be sales, market socially and commercially acceptable. Damai Indonesiaku (DI) aired on TvOne, I. INTRODUCTION an important tv channel in Indonesia, is chosen as a case of this study for some reasons. First, this Hoover notes that religion today has been program has survived for years and been regarded more public and become a target of successful in attracting the public audience and commodification [1]. This is mainly because not thereby creating a potential market for product sales. only has religion been increasingly influential in the Second, aired from different locations, the program globalized world, but it has also survived in a is unique regarding the involving of different secularized world. Moreover, religion has been audience in different places as part of its partner. considered important in the contemporary political contestation and a potential issue for social Part of our research is several times of mobilization. It is understandable then that the participatory observation of the program during mainstream media shows their great interest and May and June in 2016. A close look at the program takes religious issues as a potential market. shows a mutual relationship between dakwah content and commercial advertisement. The DI Copyright © 2018, the Authors. Published by Atlantis Press. 84 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research (ASSEHR), volume 129 reflects a contestation or negotiation between a we entered, another preacher came in and pray two commercial-oriented media and selected preachers rak‘ahs. to speak for Islam. The DI case shows that the market-driven media has given an uneasy challenge Right after the azan, the iqama was uttered. to the religious authority for them to appear or exist The imam of the mosque, and not one of the in such a platform. On television, an Islamic preachers, led the congregational ‘Asr prayer. Soon preacher is bound to conform with the market logic. after the prayer was completed, the crew of TVOne The DI program has the equally function as a came to the front and asked the audience to manage religious gathering and at the same time a market for their sitting position. The show was then started. product sales In the case of the number of the audience, it is not crowded enough, the crew may make some II. DAMAI INDONESIAKU adjustments. The crew may ask the preacher to deliver his sermon from the stage outside the The Tabligh Akbar (large public preaching mosque, at least during the first session. When a event) of Damai Indonesiaku (literally meaning “Be large number of the audience have gathered inside Peaceful My Indonesia”) was initially aired live on the mosque, the rest of the sermon would be the voting day of the 2009 general election on delivered from the stage inside. Thursday, April 9. The name of the program might have indicated the underlying intention of providing Alternatively, the crew would play a a religious show that can promote peace in society. recorded video of a sermon to wait for the audience The current producer acknowledged that the get larger enough. During an event in Serpong, program was at first intended to calm down the South Tangerang, the audience was not significant socio-political situation heated by the political in number. A recorded speech on the importance of contestation during the 2009 election. Yusuf dhikr was then played, so that both television Mansur, a well-known young preacher, performed viewers and the audience on location can listen to a in the first show to deliver peace messages and pray speech even though the live show had not yet for the nation’s stability. From then on, the show has started. The audience on location can watch the predominantly raised topics concerning universal video from two big televisions put on the right and values of Islam, such as ethics and social relations, left sides of the stage inside the mosque. and avoided topics that might spark controversy, disagreement or argument within society. It might The stage is ring-shaped and large enough be not surprising, for that reason, that one of us for two speakers to sit down. The stage was located found a Christian neighbor watching the show. The right behind the imam’s pulpit and was directed producer has even once received a letter of toward the spectators. Some decorative pillows were appreciation from a non-Muslim viewer. This put on the stage. Two standing 1.5 meter ornaments illustrates that Damai Indonesiaku has gained wide also flanked the stage. A large television monitor attention from people of various religious was hanged on each ornament. The monitor backgrounds due to its focus on promoting universal displayed an advertisement video of a sarung brand, values. Wadimor. It might also depict a silent slide showing the name of the brand. Our field research was conducted during Ramadan in 2016. While the program has been aired The stage was 30 cm higher than the live on a weekly basis, mostly on Sunday from 1pm mosque floor. It might have been made so as a until 3pm outside Ramadan, the program was aired tribute to the speaker as well as to make him able to live on daily basis from 3pm until 5pm during see the audience. While delivering his sermon, a Ramadan. As usual, the events were televised from speaker was standing up, but during a commercial different mosques in Jakarta and nearby districts. break, he sat down on the stage. The audience, During the field research, we joined some of the meanwhile, sat down on the floor. events in Depok, South Tangerang, Bekasi, and South Jakarta. Some of the events were held in Loudspeaker systems were located both Bogor as well. The shooting of Damai Indonesiaku inside the mosque and in its terrace, so the audience always takes place in a mosque or, on a rare inside and outside can listen to the speech. On some occasion, a hall. Mosques are selected to represent occasions, a television set was also located on the the centers of Islamic da‘wa. terrace so the audience outside can also see the preacher from the screen. Normally both the audience and the speakers would have arrived at the mosque before Outside the mosque, in its yard, another the time of ‘Asr. As we found in Bekasi, a preacher stage was sited for Islamic art performance televised was sitting inside the mosque when we arrived. He during advertisement breaks. The performance was accompanied by his two teenage sons. Just after always staged in Damai Indonesiaku is rampak 85 Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research (ASSEHR), volume 129 bedug (traditional single-headed drum-based depart from the location. During Ramadan, the musical accompaniment) that is performed at the audience would be asked to stay in the mosque until beginning and at the end of the preaching event as Maghrib as the call to prayer (adhan) of the mosque well as before and after the commercial break.