User-Generated Content (UGC) in Pakistan: Examining the Role of UGC Platforms in the Expression and Preservation of Cultural Identity

Authors

  • Hina Fatima Department of Development Communication in School of Communication Studies, University of the Punjab, Lahore
  • Fahad Anis Faculty of Media and Mass Communication, University of Central Punjab, Lahore. Pakistan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56536/jmes.v5i1.56

Abstract

This research is aimed at understanding how people from Pakistan could be both the creators and protectors of their own culture by making use of platforms that enable users to make content (like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok for example). Being that knowledge about this issue is very limited, this research-aims to explore the variety and implementation of available platforms. In this research, one of the methods that have been utilized by the digital media is the classification of the identification, communication, and sustainment of cultural identities. The study uses this concept of identity theory, which looks at personal and collective identities as a frame. The study looks at how 350 culturally varied people, ages 18 to 45, are affected by the internet when it comes to continuing or quitting conventional activities. UGC platforms significantly influence cultural representation, as evidenced by their strong engagement metrics. Present-day mechanism often blends customary and pioneering ideas while depicting both unfavorable and favorable typecasts. Notwithstanding their restrictions, UGC sites improve discernibility in art, music, and literature and stand-in intercultural considerate, somewhat than lessening it. This study emphasizes the consequence of indorsing stable depictions in UGC on digital media to stand-in cultural preservation and appreciation.

 

Keywords: UGC, cultural identity, digital media, cultural representation, cultural preservation, Identity Theory.

Author Biography

Hina Fatima, Department of Development Communication in School of Communication Studies, University of the Punjab, Lahore

I am a researcher and academic with a background in Media and Communication Studies. I have done my Master of Philosophy in Media and Communication Studies at the University of Central Punjab and my MSc in Communication Studies from the University of the Punjab. Currently, I am working as a visiting lecturer at the Department of Development Communication at the University of the Punjab, having more than two decades of academic and research experience in teaching. Among my interests are: visual communication, development communication, digital media, crisis communication, and health communication. I have presented my work successfully at international conferences like AMIC in Shah Alam, Malaysia and AAOU in Islamabad, Pakistan, and I published four research articles on different websites of esteemed international and national journals focusing both on qualitative and quantitative methodologies.

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Published

2025-03-14

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 1 (2025): Journal of Media and Entrepreneurial Studies

Section

Articles