Otoritas Keagamaan di Era Media Sosial: Komodifikasi Fatwa Online dan Krisis Kepercayaan Publik Muslim Indonesia

Abstract

The expansion of social media has reshaped how Indonesian Muslims access and circulate religious knowledge, giving rise to new preaching actors who operate outside conventional channels of religious authority. This study examines three interrelated issues: the restructuring of religious authority driven by digitalization, the patterns and mechanisms through which online fatwas are commodified, and how formal religious institutions respond to this fragmentation. A qualitative approach combining the sociology of religion, social media content analysis, and case study was employed, drawing on six months of virtual participant observation, in-depth interviews, and document review. Thematic analysis of the data yields three principal findings. First, religious authority has fragmented, marked by the emergence of diverse digital preaching actors, from “celebrity ustaz” to transnational preachers, whose legitimacy rests more on digital capital than scholarly capital. Second, fatwa commodification operates through content monetization, paid religious consultation services, and sponsored da’wah, collectively pushing religious content toward sensationalism. Third, formal institutions such as the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), Nahdlatul Ulama, and Muhammadiyah have begun establishing a digital presence, though only NU Online has so far succeeded in pairing scholarly rigor with a competitive distribution strategy. The study concludes that restoring public trust in formal religious authority requires substantive digital transformation, not merely symbolic presence, accompanied by a religious digital literacy ecosystem that equips the public to navigate an increasingly dense and unverified information environment.