Hyperlinked Dutch-Iranian Cyberspace

Studies of the Dutch-Iranian diaspora are rare, but all indicate features that set it apart from other migrant communities in the Netherlands. It appears from these surveys that Dutch-Iranians have low levels of communal organization and sparsely knit networks. This article maintains that the pattern also holds for online Dutch-Iranian community structures, and builds its case on an examination of hyperlinks between websites of Iranians in the Netherlands. Second, the article examines sectors and their mutual relations in online Dutch-Iranian networks. It is argued, against what may be deduced from established theory and observations of Iranian diasporas, that networks organized around cultural content are the most inclusive and central and those which centre upon politics, the most exclusive and isolated. Linking patterns as well as website content serve to lay bare this structure of hyperlinked Dutch-Iranian cyberspace.

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