Social media has brought a huge change in people’s perception around the world and Pakistan isn’t an exception. Being one of the rapidly growing countries in terms of internet users, Pakistanis use social media – including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok – to gather information and formulating their opinions on social, political or economic issues. This has led to dramatic changes in the means of communication and becoming more public, frequently avoiding media intermediaries. The positive impact of social media in manipulating public opinion is an important factor affecting the social context of Pakistan to a great extent.

In the past decade, mobile internet user penetration has grown immensely in the Pakistan primarily on the back of cheaper smartphones and mobile data. In the light of the latest data relevant to Pakistani users, it has been established that over 100 million locals have internet connection, and a vast number of them use social networks.

There is no doubt that the social media presence has levelled out the playing field by providing a platform for the suppressed in Pakistan.

Social networking sites such as Facebook, X [formerly known as Twitter] and YouTube are widely employed by students, working persons, politicians and even activists. They have popularized the use of social media which affords people an opportunity to share and make comments on diverse issues cutting across political leadership, entertainment and other key interest areas.

There is no doubt that the social media presence has levelled out the playing field by providing a platform for the suppressed in Pakistan. While the mainstream media is under the government and corporate control, the platforms provide an opportunity to the people  to express their ideas freely. This has resulted into a changed way of sharing information that is being accessed in the country. Therefore, social media is now a core determinant of public opinion.

In Pakistan, social media has a most active role by which people are actively participating in politics. The political class of the society and the political parties have immensely relied on social media to popularize their agenda and mobilize their supporters. That’s why X and Facebook have become the territories where their supporters systematically advance their programs, attack opponents, and engage entrants during election campaigns.

Also read: Citizen Journalism: A Double-Edged Sword

In this regard, arguably, the 2024 general elections in Pakistan also shifted somewhat in this regard, as ever more political parties started to turn to social media to get their message through directly to the masses, and especially the young. Politics went virtual as social media campaigns, rallies streamed on the internet, and hashtags became campaign tools in the elections. Both PTI and PML-N were very active in this regard, as engaged they public directly, thus sidestepping the mainstream media. This trend has only increased, with the media becoming the center stage in the political environment of Pakistan.

On social media platforms like X, there is no editorial control; hence, some of the information shared could be biased or half-truth.

It has also been influential in providing voices to smaller political parties and civil society organizations. For example, PTM and Aurat March have used social media specifically for creating awareness about their causes, and for rallying their supporters to attend the protests. Due to the advantages of social media, people using X and Facebook in particular have been able to focus on subjects that are irrelevant for mainstream media such as human rights violation and gender inequality.

In this respect, these networking websites have dramatically influenced the way the people of Pakistan think about events and problems around them. The real time nature of information on such platforms enables the user to capture current events as they happen, before they are reported by conventional media channels. In disaster-like situations or periods of political turbulence or pandemics, social media is an excellent source of real-time information and becomes part of the reference point for public opinions.

For instance, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, social media networks became the primary source of information dissemination, protective measures, and vaccinations. It was seen that using social sites like Twitter and Facebook, health authorities along with the journalists and the citizens actively posted messages and provided information for mass awareness. But that speed wasn’t boring, it was very dangerous: people got confused by numerous fake news, lies, and unverified information regarding the virus’ origins and vaccine effectiveness.

While the social media has enabled people in Pakistan open to express themselves freely, it has also made a path to misinformation, fakes news, and hatred speech. The social media is characterized by the spread of information and, therefore, fake information can spread faster than the truth. The problem is, in a country like Pakistan where literacy rates are considerably low and people may or may not think critically, this can be dangerous.

Another important phenomenon which has been aggravated in Pakistan is political polarization. This has resulted in what is known as echo chambers; the users are dominated with the content that supports their political beliefs. This has resulted in political and social factions that are hostile, therefore, thus writing off the any possibility of any constructive discourse on matters of national importance. By contrast, the role social media plays is to propagate extreme opinions and enmity, thus increase the split in society.

The social media effects have also affected the conventional media in the same way. Television networks, newspapers and reporters have been greatly affected since the change in the consumption of news. Most news organizations have active accounts on social media sites to disseminating basic news and bulletins, commentary as well as participation.

At the same time, the social networks mean bloggers, vloggers, and other citizens can become popular through propagating their views. It has thus democratized information by enabling people to counter the well-established media outlets. However, this trend also has its drawbacks. On social media platforms like X, there is no editorial control; hence, some of the information shared could be biased or half-truth.