Tech firms helped fuel India’s hate music ecosystem: Report
Report says content targeting Muslims and Christians generated millions of views and advertising revenue despite platform rules
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — Major technology companies including YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music and Meta have hosted and monetized hundreds of Hindutva pop songs that promote hatred and violence against religious minorities in India, according to a new study that raises concerns about the role of digital platforms in amplifying extremist content.
The report, titled Profiting from Hate Music: The Role of YouTube, Meta, Spotify, and Apple Music in Hosting and Monetizing India’s Hate Music Industry, was published by the U.S.-based Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH).
The organization described it as the first comprehensive effort to map India’s hate music ecosystem and examine how global technology companies may be helping sustain it.
Researchers identified 523 songs across the four platforms that they said violated the companies’ own content policies by promoting hatred, dehumanization, and, in many cases, explicit calls for violence against religious minorities, particularly Muslims and Christians.
According to the report, the material reached vast audiences. On YouTube alone, the songs accumulated more than 198 million views, while tracks listed in Meta’s Music Library were used in more than 5.9 million Instagram Reels.
CSOH said nearly one in every two songs it documented explicitly incited or threatened violence against religious minorities.
“Hate music is one of the oldest and most dangerous instruments of mass violence, and we have seen where it leads, from Rwanda to Myanmar,” said Raqib Naik, executive director of CSOH.
“What makes India’s Hindutva pop so alarming is its reach,” he said. “These companies and platforms, most of them based in the United States, have handed these artists a global stage, an audience of hundreds of millions, and the tools and revenue streams to keep producing more.”
The report identified 210 songs on YouTube, 109 on Spotify, 103 in Meta’s Music Library, and 101 on Apple Music. Researchers said the content was produced by dozens of artists and DJs operating across multiple platforms.
Of the 210 songs found on YouTube, 104 tracks directly incited or threatened violence against Muslims, attracting at least 97 million views, according to the study.
The remaining songs, while stopping short of direct calls for violence, were said to rely on dehumanizing language, anti-minority slurs and conspiracy theories that portrayed Muslims and other minorities as threats, narratives researchers warned could contribute to real-world hostility and violence.
The report also highlighted the financial incentives underpinning the ecosystem. Advertisements from 103 brands appeared alongside the videos, including those of major corporations and institutions.
YouTube’s “Super Thanks” feature, which allows viewers to financially support creators, was enabled on 55% of the videos flagged by researchers. One channel identified in the study had also received YouTube’s Silver Creator Award.
CSOH concluded by urging YouTube, Meta, Spotify and Apple Music to enforce their own policies more consistently, remove violative content and introduce stronger safeguards against the monetization of hate speech.
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