Social media has evolved significantly over the years while providing strategic platforms for voices to reach billions of people within no time. Accordingly, it has advantages and disadvantages (threats). The nature of threats emanating from social media, especially Twitter, in the context of Pakistan, are mainly in the form of radicalization, glorification of terrorist groups, propagation of violent sub-nationalism and hybrid warfare. Though Pakistan has been relatively active after 2020 in responding to social media challenges, implementing social media regulations remains an issue, especially when most social media platforms are foreign in origin. This paper evaluates the interlinkage of social media and national security in the context of Pakistan while exploring how agents of insecurity and instability exploit social media and what response mechanism the state has placed to mitigate these threats. The paper is a qualitative inquiry using primary and secondary sources to answer these questions. The research findings suggest marginal securitization of social media, albeit without significant implementation. Bibliography Entry Al Abd, Saad. 2022. "Social Media as a Threat to National Security: A Case Study of Twitter in Pakistan." Margalla Papers 26 (2): 96-107.
This paper explores the literature on conceptual aspects of national security, its relationship with social media, and the impacts of the latter on the national security of Pakistan. This paper answers a few questions, i.e., what is national security, how does social media overlap with it, and what are the implications of social media for the national security of Pakistan? The methodology applied in this research is qualitative and relies on secondary sources; therefore, literature has been explored to find the answers. The analysis of this research is inspired by the thematic analysis technique through which it has been ascertained that national security is a subjective phenomenon and is mainly defined by national values. The relationship between national security and social media is significant, as the latter extensively relies upon as an avenue by anarchists, extremists, terrorists, and external forces to spread disinformation and achieve their respective objectives. As far as Pakistan is concerned, the interrelationship between national security and social media has not been looked into in detail. Accordingly, this research concludes that there are gaps in the literature produced in Pakistan on social media vis-à-vis its connection with national security. Consequently, the existing literature lacks an explanation of the political, strategic, and social motives of the actors employing social media for their respective vested purposes, especially for propaganda.
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