SOCIAL MEDIA AND YOUTH’S POLITICAL ACTIVISM: EMERGENCE OF A NETWORKED PUBLIC SPHERE IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

Social media has become a central component of modern society and politics around the world including Pakistan. The paper attempts to examine the influence of political activism among social media-savvy youth in highlighting the political issues of Pakistan. This paper examines how Pakistani youth’s political activism via social media gives rise to an emergent-networked public sphere. A survey questionnaire was distributed to 403-university students aged 18-29 to examine their social media use and political engagement. Findings of the survey show that public discourse on social media, driven by Pakistan’s networked youth, is a growing force that political players and pundits must reckon with.  The paper concludes that politically active youth make use of social media to discuss political issues, highlight problems besetting the country, which generates a public discourse, put pressure on government and politicians to take action that ultimately bears influence upon politics and governance in Pakistan.