- Social media in Pakistan
Arguably the biggest development in the modern era in terms of usage, versatility, scale and scope, social media has undeniably brought this world together in ways never before fathomed to be possible, and has connected humanity through a free, easy and simple manner.
Pakistan has also greatly benefited from social media, from activism to the spreading of information to the spreading of awareness. One cannot simply ignore the pros of this invention or negate what it has done to change the current status quo and how it functions. This does not, however, overshadow the exponentially growing manipulation and propaganda which this same tool is being used to spread.
As with every well-spirited and well-intentioned development, it was not long before men found out how to use social media for their own vested interests and personal agendas. This plague is evident in Pakistan, where this forum is used in countless ways with ill intentions and harmful aims, and which has caused this great prospect to be brought down in the eyes of many as nothing but an area to spread fake news and propaganda.
Much of this problem arises from the fundamental condition of modern society itself, which leads itself into self-made problems head on and is way too vulnerable, malleable and naïve. People have grown to be overly complacent and this very attitude and characteristic has led to a vast majority of the Pakistani population believing almost everything they see online. This is just calling out and asking for sites to spread fake news as they wish, expecting and receiving a more than favourable turnout every time. This, if not highly problematic on its own, and used by anarchists wishing for nothing but the downfall of society, also gives heed to a much larger and dangerous problem; that of propaganda.
In this day and age, with non-state actors of all types and intentions gaining so much power online, it has become as easy as the press of a button to either make thousands your supporters or turn millions against a possibly innocent and honest rival. This catastrophic exploitation of the “freedom of speech” granted to everyone in a free, democratic society has caused seismic waves of violence, hate and discontent between factions unnecessarily made with no real contentions or problems. This has completely altered the political democratic system of elections, the government’s image in the general public as well as the image and reputation of anyone even barely famous enough to make an impact on others’ lives. A great yet controversial example of this very problem is the recent Pakistani elections, in which all parties involved at the helm of the competition were scarred and brought down by posts constituted of utter and complete lies, yet not making a difference to the countless who believed it with no second thoughts.
This is also a problem the solution to which is not so simple, as stopping any sort of website involved in such acts can be considered as infringing the right to freedom of speech, and can cause an uproar bigger than that the fake news was spreading in the first place. This is made worse by the fact that we live in an exponentially growing liberal society where social media is considered as a ‘safe space’ where anyone can express any opinion they may hold.
Moreover, adding greatly to this problem is the opportunistic nature of today’s advanced and technologically aware violent non-state actors and terrorist organisations who see social media as a means of both funding and recruiting for their own agendas. On a primary level, with such widespread fundraising mechanisms developed over the years online such as Kickstarter among many others, gathering funding for any even remotely relatable cause or belief is not only easy, it’s exploitable to a large extent, where people may think they are funding a cause completely opposite to the one which is pocketing the money. On a secondary tier, with so many employment sites and opportunities online, the major source of employment in the modern era is through social media, where again desperate, unemployed and job seeking youth are fed a farce which drags them down a life of manipulation and crime as well. These are just two of many points which can be made about how the actual benefits of social media; case in point being fundraising and employment opportunities, can turn into some of the biggest risks and plagues of the online world.
However, at the end of the day, it is up to us to assess whether all this is a problem associated with social media solely or whether it has more to do with the actual temperament and thought process of our society, which we must change up from the grass root level if we are to ever reach a true, free, honest and just democratic society.
