Social media serves as a powerful platform for connecting people and amplifying diverse voices across the globe. However, what was once a tool for global digital communication and connectivity has evolved into, among other things, a powerful instrument for manipulation and coercion. In just over two decades, social media has transformed our social interactions and communication methods, emerging as a potent tool for global-scale propaganda. Its influence is unparalleled, giving rise to new forms of propaganda, shaping public opinion, and playing a pivotal role in significant revolutions such as the Arab Spring, the Libyan Revolution, the Occupy Wall Street movement, and the Maidan Uprisings in Ukraine. Presently, over 4.95 billion individuals globally are active on social media, marking a 240% increase from the 2.07 billion users recorded in 2015.
While rumours, false information, and fabricated content have long existed, social media now presents new and alarming challenges to information integrity. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter) are often more trusted and relied upon for news and information than mainstream media. X has become the go-to social media site for identifying new trends through trending hashtags. Today, the struggle is not to find information but to discern truth. A study by the Knight Foundation investigating the spread of misinformation and fake news before, during, and after the 2016 US Presidential elections found that more than 10 million tweets from 700,000 Twitter accounts were involved in more than 600 misinformation and conspiracy news sites.
Social media empowers individuals to amplify their voices and challenge dominant narratives. However, it also provides fertile ground for spreading misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda. The design of social media platforms makes sensationalist content spread easily, often at the expense of factual accuracy. The algorithms prioritize engagement metrics like comments, shares, and likes, encouraging the spread of inflammatory and polarising content. This design choice creates echo chambers where individuals are surrounded by ideas that reinforce their existing beliefs, potentially damaging social cohesion. According to Jacob Helberg, author of *Wires of War*, “Many of the algorithms that govern our online lives may be one of the most powerful radicalising instruments of the 21st century.”
It would not be an exaggeration to say that no technology has ever been weaponised on such an unprecedented global scale as social media, proving to be an effective instrument for non-state actors to conduct terrorist activities. For instance, for over a decade, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula used social media and online propaganda to launch its English-language digital magazine, which inspired the Boston Marathon bombers in 2010. A UNDP report (2018) found evidence of ISIS using Twitter, Telegram, and online propaganda magazines to recruit, radicalise, and coordinate attacks in Africa.
The sheer volume and spread of user-generated content on social media make it increasingly difficult to distinguish facts from fiction. The consequence is a fractured information ecosystem where competing narratives struggle for dominance, leaving the public uncertain and sceptical. This phenomenon was demonstrated by the spread of false information relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, including conspiracy theories about its origin and misinformation about its prevention and cure.
The dual nature of social media as a tool for implementing government policy and grassroots reporting by ordinary people is a testament to its complexity. Governments employ it as an effective instrument for shaping and disseminating narratives and managing public opinion. Amidst bias and propaganda-based news in mainstream media, citizen journalism has emerged as a new form of reporting that counters misleading official narratives. A recent example is Israel’s war on Palestine, where on-the-ground reporting by Palestinians helped social media users see the reality of the war-torn region. This dichotomy highlights the battleground between truth and falsehood that defines the digital landscape.
Social media has become a primary instrument for the people of Palestine and their supporters in countering Israel’s narrative. Sympathisers of Palestine worldwide have become active social media advocates, producing videos on TikTok and coordinating international protests using platforms like X. In the words of Michael Broning, Executive Director of Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung’s office in New York, “It’s like a TikTok intifada.” The outpouring of sympathy on social media for the people of Palestine after Israel’s strike on the Rafah camp on 26 May 2024 is an example of social media solidarity. The gory images and videos emerging from Rafah in the aftermath of the attack were deemed too graphic and were censored on Instagram. To avoid censorship and garner support for the Palestinians, an AI-generated image was shared on Instagram, depicting tents in a camp arranged to read “All Eyes on Rafah.” This image was shared more than 44 million times on Instagram in less than 48 hours, showing strong social media support for the people of Palestine.
The silence of several A-list celebrities and social media influencers on the plight of Palestinians in the ongoing conflict did not go unnoticed on social media. As part of a pro-Palestinian protest, a mass-blocking movement called “Blockout 2024” flooded Instagram. The movement called for blocking celebrities and influencers on social media channels for refusing to use their platform to show solidarity with the victims of Israeli aggression. Similarly, people worldwide joined together to boycott major corporations such as McDonald’s, Starbucks, Pepsi, and Coca-Cola following a social media boycott initiative that drew attention to their alleged ties with Israel. The call for a boycott dovetailed with the Palestine-led Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) Movement, which was initiated in 2005 and calls for a boycott of all companies, Israeli or international, that are involved in the violation of Palestinian rights.
The same social media platforms are also used for political manipulation, systematically influencing political discourse within a state by shaping news reporting, silencing dissent, and undermining state institutions. For instance, Rodrigo Duterte, former President of the Philippines, is known for using social media for political manipulation. He used Facebook to reinforce positive narratives about his campaign, defame opponents, and silence critics. Myanmar also serves as an example where incendiary digital hate speech targeting the minority Muslim Rohingya people has been linked to riots and communal violence.
Social media serves as a potent means of communication. However, it has presented innumerable challenges with far-reaching consequences that we have yet to fully realise. From political manipulation to societal polarisation, its effects have echoed across communities and nations. The world has witnessed social media movements, internet activism, and boycott campaigns against tyranny, racism, and injustice, which have visibly impacted the course of events. Social media is fast turning into a tool of information warfare that is likely to gain ascendancy in future wars and conflicts. Social media platform owners like Meta, X, and Alphabet must therefore take measures to promote free speech, ensure digital content veracity, combat hate speech, end shadow banning and censorship, and uphold moral standards, thereby allowing social media to fulfil its intended role as a platform for diverse voices and informed dialogue.
Areesha Anwer
The writer is a Research Officer at the Center for International Strategic Studies Sindh (CISSS). She has a Master’s in International Relations from the University of Karachi.