Social or digital media bots are automated programs that can perform various tasks on social media platforms, such as posting, liking, commenting, following, and sharing content. Some social media bots are benign and provide useful services, such as weather updates and sports scores. However, some social media bots are malicious and aim to manipulate public opinion, spread misinformation, influence elections, and disrupt social harmony.
According to some studies, social media bots can manipulate social and political opinions on social media by creating the illusion of popularity or consensus around certain topics, candidates, or movements. They can also amplify the reach and visibility of false or misleading information, polarize online communities, sow distrust in institutions, and undermine democratic processes.
Some of the methods that social media bots use to increase the number of likes, comments, polls, tweets, shares, votes and links include creating fake accounts that mimic human users and follow or interact with other accounts.It also include using hashtags, keywords, or trending topics to attract attention and join conversations.
Furthermore, retweeting, reposting, or endorsing content from other sources without verification or attribution is also one of bots operations.Accordingly,
they can coordinate with other bots or human operators to create network effects and amplify messages.
Bots also exploit the algorithms of social media platforms that favor popular or engaging content.
Social media bots can negatively manipulate Pakistani social media politics by spreading propaganda, rumors, or fake news that favor or discredit certain political parties, leaders, or policies. They can also interfere with the electoral process by influencing voter preferences, turnout, or behavior. For example, some reports suggest that social media bots are being used by all political parties to spread misinformation and incite Public political sympathy during the period of 2018 to 2023 in Pakistan. Some of the topics that were targeted by social media bots included the role of the military, the judiciary, corruption, terrorism, minority rights, and foreign relations. Furthermore, social media polls and opinions are also being managed through bots.
Social media bots can be controlled for transparent poll counts and fake news by adopting various measures at the individual, institutional, and societal levels. They include to educating and empowering social media users to critically evaluate the sources, credibility, and accuracy of online information.
Developing and enforcing ethical and legal standards for social media platforms to prevent or remove bot accounts and malicious content is also critical.
Promoting media literacy and digital citizenship among the public to foster a culture of responsible and respectful online communication is significant. Then, supporting independent and professional journalism and fact-checking organizations to provide reliable and balanced information to the public is vital for free and transparent flow of information. Similarly, encouraging dialogue and collaboration among different stakeholders, such as government agencies, civil society groups, academic institutions, and media outlets to combat social media manipulation and promote democratic values is essential. Lastly, it is important for social media users to know about bots & subsequent dissection of facts & figures.
