Journals / Medya ve Din Araştırmaları Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 9 Sayı: 1

A Multifaceted Interpretation of a Viral Religious Performance in Digital Media: The Hymn “Pilgrims at the Kaaba Say ‘Hû’ to Allah”

Dijital Medyada Viral Bir Dini Performansın Çok Yönlü Okunması: “Kâbe’de Hacılar Hû Der Allah” İlahisi

Fatih Ceylan(TOKAT GAZİOSMANPAŞA ÜNİVERSİTESİ, NİKSAR UYGULAMALI BİLİMLER FAKÜLTESİ)0000-0002-7494-5635
Dursun Yılmaz(TOKAT GAZİOSMANPAŞA ÜNİVERSİTESİ, TOKAT SAĞLIK HİZMETLERİ MESLEK YÜKSEKOKULU, SAÇ BAKIMI VE GÜZELLİK HİZMETLERİ BÖLÜMÜ)0000-0001-6161-3482
Pages
431–456
Publication Date
2026-06-30
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The findings indicate that the hymn is interpreted by different social groups through dominant, oppositional, and conciliatory readings; that it triggers a moral panic process by spreading from digital platforms to traditional media and politics; that it becomes commercialized through mediatization and thus transforms into political symbolic capital; and that critical voices fall into a spiral of silence.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:The aim of this study is to conduct a multifaceted analysis of the case of the “Pilgrims at the Kaaba Say ‘Hû Der Allah’” hymn, which went viral on social media in Türkiye in February 2026 and sparked widespread public debate.
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Key Findings & Data:The theoretical framework of the study is based on Hall’s coding/decoding, counter-agenda setting, Cohen’s moral panic, Hjarvard’s mediatization, and Noelle-Neumann’s spiral of silence theories.
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Conclusion & Impact:The findings indicate that the hymn is interpreted by different social groups through dominant, oppositional, and conciliatory readings; that it triggers a moral panic process by spreading from digital platforms to traditional media and politics; that it becomes commercialized through mediatization and thus transforms into political symbolic capital; and that critical voices fall into a spiral of silence.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:2026 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Dijital Medyatikleşme · Viral dini performans · İlahi

Abstract

The aim of this study is to conduct a multifaceted analysis of the case of the “Pilgrims at the Kaaba Say ‘Hû Der Allah’” hymn, which went viral on social media in Türkiye in February 2026 and sparked widespread public debate. The theoretical framework of the study is based on Hall’s coding/decoding, counter-agenda setting, Cohen’s moral panic, Hjarvard’s mediatization, and Noelle-Neumann’s spiral of silence theories. Conducted using a qualitative research design, the study employed the case study method. The research data were collected through document analysis from publicly available digital and written sources and were analyzed using thematic analysis, one of the content analysis methods. The findings indicate that the hymn is interpreted by different social groups through dominant, oppositional, and conciliatory readings; that it triggers a moral panic process by spreading from digital platforms to traditional media and politics; that it becomes commercialized through mediatization and thus transforms into political symbolic capital; and that critical voices fall into a spiral of silence. In conclusion, it can be argued that in the digital age, viral content sheds its initial innocence and is transformed—or transformed into—a tool of struggle where the production of power and meaning operates directly across political, cultural, economic, and ideological spheres.

Özet

Bu araştırmanın amacı, Şubat 2026’da Türkiye’de sosyal medyada viral olarak geniş toplumsal tartışmalara yol açan “Kâbe’de Hacılar Hû Der Allah” ilahisi vakasını çok yönlü analiz etmektir. Araştırmanın kuramsal çerçevesi, Hall’un kodlama/kodaçımı, ters gündem belirleme, Cohen’in moral panik, Hjarvard’ın medyatikleşme ve Noelle-Neumann’ın suskunluk sarmalı kuramlarına dayanmaktadır. Nitel araştırma deseniyle yapılan çalışmada vaka/durum analizi (örnek olay incelemesi) yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın verileri kamuya açık dijital ve yazılı kaynaklardan doküman incelemesi yöntemiyle toplanmış ve içerik analizi yöntemlerinden biri olan tematik analiz yöntemiyle çözümlenmiştir. Bulgular, ilahinin; farklı toplumsal kesimlerce baskın, muhalif ve müzakereci okumalarla anlamlandırıldığını, dijital platformlardan geleneksel medya ve siyasete taşınarak içeriğin ahlaki panik sürecini tetiklediğini, medyatikleşerek ticarileştiğini ve bu şekilde siyasal sembolik sermayeye dönüştüğünü, eleştirel seslerin ise suskunluk sarmalına girdiğini göstermektedir. Sonuç olarak, dijital çağda viral olan içeriklerin, başlangıçtaki masumiyetinden sıyrılarak, siyasal, kültürel, ekonomi ve ideoloji alanlarda doğrudan güç ve anlam üretiminin işlediği bir mücadele aracına dönüştüğü veya dönüştürüldüğü söylenebilir.

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Cite This Article

Ceylan, F., Yılmaz, D. (2026). A Multifaceted Interpretation of a Viral Religious Performance in Digital Media: The Hymn “Pilgrims at the Kaaba Say ‘Hû’ to Allah”. Medya ve Din Araştırmaları Dergisi, Cilt: 9 Sayı: 1, 431–456. https://doi.org/10.47951/mediad.1922412

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