Robert Spencer (writer)
| Robert Spencer | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | February 27, 1962 |
| Residence | United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, (M.A. 1986, Religious Studies) |
| Occupation | Author, blogger |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Known for |
Criticism of Islam, books and websites about Jihad and Islamic terrorism |
| Notable work |
The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion, (2006) The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (And the Crusades), (2005) |
| Style | Advocacy journalism |
| Website | jihadwatch |
Robert Bruce Spencer (born February 27, 1962) is an American author and blogger and a key figure of the counter-jihad movement in the United States. He appears frequently on Fox News and has given seminars to various law enforcement units in the United States.
Spencer, a self-proclaimed expert on radical Islam, has published a number of books on the subject including two New York Times bestsellers. In 2003 he founded and has since directed Jihad Watch, a blog which he describes as containing "news of the international jihad, [and] commentary" which is dedicated to "bringing public attention to the role that jihad theology and ideology plays in the modern world, and to correcting popular misconceptions about the role of jihad and religion in modern-day conflicts".
He has also co-founded Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) and the Freedom Defense Initiative with blogger Pamela Geller, with whom he also co-authored a book, The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America.
His viewpoints have been described as anti-Islamic or Islamophobic, while he denies this and says he focuses his criticism on radical Islam and its violence. In 2013 the UK Home Office has barred Spencer and Geller from travel to the UK for 3 to 5 years for "making statements that may foster hatred that might lead to inter-community violence", a decision which drew criticism.
Spencer is a member of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, the Eastern Catholic Antiochian Greek Catholic counterpart of the ancient Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch. It is a sui iuris church of the Catholic Church whose adherents are, according to Spencer, "mostly concentrated in Lebanon and Syria, also in Jordan and the Palestinian territories." In a 2006 interview, Spencer stated that his grandparents were forced to emigrate from an area that is now part of Turkey because they were Christians. According to a 2010 interview in New York magazine, Spencer's father worked for the Voice of America during the Cold War, and in his younger days, Spencer himself worked at Revolution Books, a Maoist bookstore in New York City founded by Robert Avakian.
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