9/11 in America, however, is to make the flawed assumption that many, if not all or even most, Middle Easterners are potentially a threat to America's security, hostile toward the U.S. and the West, and at least ideologically tolerant if not directly supportive of jihad against the West and terrorism (O'Reilly, 2004). Because this is the case, an e-marketing campaign to enhance the image of this important and growing consumer group is needed; such a campaign is necessary not only because of the economic aspects of image-building, but because of the political and cultural ramifications of American ideals of equality, justice and diversity.
The purpose of this report, therefore, is to first explicate the relevant characteristics of the Middle Eastern consumer market in the United States an secondly, to present an e-marketing strategy for improving the image of this ethnic minority. The literature will be employed to address thee goals. It will be demonstrated that the Internet offers a unique medium for such a campaign in that it reaches a substantial number of Americans in homes and offices around the country and is a marketing tool with a proven history of success.
Historical Overview of Middle Easterners in the U.S.
Lisa Majaj (2002) commented that although there have been Arabs and other Middle Eastern peoples in the U.S. since its exploration by European powers and prior to its emergence as an autonomous nation, it was not until the 1870s that Arabs began emigrating to the U.S. in significant numbers. Scholars have estimated that by World War II, there were at least 350,000 people of Arab descent living in the United States. The contemporary Arab-American community dates from this first wave of immigration as well as from a post-World War II wave of immigration that continues today.
Experts believe that there are currently about 2 to 4 million individuals identified as "Arabs" or, more appropriately, as persons of M...