Hayat Douhan received a PhD from from the institute for media and communication studies at the Free University of Berlin. She received an MA in Applied Linguistics from Moulay Ismail University (Morocco) and an MA in Media and Cultural Studies from Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (Qatar), in addition to two graduate diplmas in Organizational Leadership and Higher Education Administration from Mercyhurst University (PA, USA). Hayat worked as an EFL English at the Ministry of National Education in Morocco. She also worked as a training program coordinator at Aljazeera Media Network in Doha before she received a Marie-Curie fellowship and worked at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), where she was involved in an ERC funded project: Mediating Islam in the Digital Age (MIDA). Her research interests includes the intersections between media, culture and society dynamics. 

Thesis: Digital Media Use & Religious Authority among Moroccan Mosque Associations in Germany. 

This dissertation examines the mediatization and digitization of Islam, with a focus on Moroccan Muslims and mosque associations in Germany. Following a qualitative research design, it explores how digital technology and online media are used by Moroccan Muslim communities. It also examines how the construct of religious authority is perceived and embodied within this specific local context. By doing so, it aspires to identify the possible implications of digital media use on the dynamics of religious authority. Drawing on several case studies, hybrid ethnography, and semi-structured interviews with different actors within these Moroccan mosque associations, namely the associations’ administration, the imams (religious leaders), and the mosque community members, the research uncovers valuable insights regarding the digitization of Islam and Islamic authority in the local context.