Into social media's honeypot of hate and hate selling

Yes, there is a business model. And it is working well, too

‘One outrage a day keeps the real problems away’ – this seems to be the motto for many on social media.

So, a typical day for some social media influencers who could be corporate citizens turned investors, or simply someone with enough followers starts this way: Write a provocative tweet against some company’s advertisement or policy or violence in some state. While tweeting, he tags some media persons asking questions like ‘Why are you silent about this?’ and tags some more of his ilk who have recently found fame by outraging on television channels. The agenda for the day has been set.

The key thing: There is never any disclosure of whether these people have any business interest in any competing firm or not. Who cares about these subtleties, anyway?

So, once the wheels have been set in motion, as the day progresses, some recently-set up and low-credibility websites pick up these tweets and turn them into sensational stories. Of course, there is no reportage of facts, no quotes from anyone affected, and often, poorly written as well.

By evening, if there is traction and the morning ‘plant’ is outrageous enough, expect one or few channels to pick it up, run it as their exclusive story, and there will be anchors willing to lend their shrill ‘outraged’ voices to it. Oh, by the way, the persons in the panel will be the same who started or were tagged in the original ‘plant’. And if there is enough outrage, expect a few more days of spluttering and foaming.

In a vast country like India, there will be something to outrage about every day. If there isn’t, a photoshopped picture or edited video always comes in handy. Interesting fact: Even if the video is proved to be edited or the image photoshopped, it will not be removed. Why? For every single person who points out the mistake, there will be dozens who will retweet it and make comments like: “Oh, this video may be edited, but what about 1500 AD, when…”

Interestingly, many of these ‘hate sellers’ are people who have retired or made their monies during earlier regimes. They have built their houses, bought their cars, have fat bank balances, and children are well educated and probably abroad. Now, they want to cleanse the education system – the same one which gave them and their children success; the society – the same one that allowed them to thrive; the people – the same ones they lived and worked happily with.

The only time they are perturbed is when the government proposes to raise some taxes. Then, they get outraged and start tweeting and writing articles decrying the proposal, even if there isn’t one.

There is a young brigade, too, whose motivation, besides cheap thrills, is money as well. Of course, it is quite possible that many educated youngsters have taken this route because of anger and frustration in the absence of jobs. As the data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy points suggests, there is a widespread problem of high unemployment among graduates.

But whether due to frustration, anger, or self-righteousness, hate has become a business model. There are numerous websites that seek money as pallbearers of our faith. There are Youtube channels like that too. Of course, they justify everything in the name of seeking retribution for the past – ones most haven’t even witnessed.

You can see them seeking funds on Twitter and other social media platforms. Moneymaking for them is simple. So, someone with, say, one lakh followers needs just 5,000 people to buy into their hate stories and contribute a nominal amount of Rs 200, and it translates into Rs 10 lakh – that is, with a conversion rate of merely 5 per cent, this person is earning almost ten times India’s per capita income of around Rs 1.5 lakh. For someone living in a non-metro, Rs 80,000 a month is more than a respectable amount.

The cost of running these businesses is low, too. Building a poor-looking website or a Vlog isn’t an expensive affair. The bigger ones even hire a few people to give it a professional look and name. And they can earn crores.

Of course, to counter these obnoxious websites and Youtube channels, there are a whole new bunch of fact-checkers who have emerged. They also have their websites and Youtube channels with enough sponsors.

This is a completely new ecosystem that has emerged in the past few years. It is self-sustaining too. In short, an outrage a day keeps issues like inflation and unemployment at bay. And allows many to make hay.

It is a sunrise sector. Hopefully, the sunset is around the corner.

(Joydeep Ghosh is a senior journalist)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.