Use of Social Media for Amplification of Extremist Narratives in Pakistan- A Case Study of TLP

Abstract

This paper addresses the significance of social media platforms, specifically Youtube and X, in promoting and amplifying extremist narratives in Pakistan. A case study of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) is undertaken to understand how social media platforms can be employed to propagate and amplify extremist narratives. The paper presents a brief historical study of the origins and evolution of TLP. Analytics of four official YouTube accounts associated with TLP are studied to gauge the audience reach of TLP’s content. Moreover, archival data of multiple trends on X (formerly twitter) promoted by TLP is also examined. The timelines of these trends are also studied to find a correlation between these trends and on ground events related to TLP. This study finds out that as of Oct 2024 the cumulative subscriber count of the four YouTube channels run by TLP is 1.37 million, while video views count is 172.43 million. This indicates that the actual extent of TLP’s audience reach must be much higher if TLP’s fan pages are also incorporated. A temporal analysis of archival twitter trends data related to TLP reveals that TLP’s online activity closely coincides with key events involving the group at the time. The paper also examines the role of engagement algorithms and weak content moderation policies of social media platforms in amplification of extremist content online.