Profiting from hate: Hindutva songs targeting Muslims, Christians flourish on YouTube, Meta, Spotify, Apple
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A study by a US-based organisation found that 523 Hindutva pop hate songs across various online platforms, most of them based in the US, promote hatred and violence against Muslims and Christians in India, while platforms such as YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music and Meta's Music Library continue to host and monetise them despite their own policies prohibiting such content.
The findings were published on Monday in a report titled Profiting from Hate Music: The Role of YouTube, Meta, Spotify, and Apple Music in Hosting and Monetising India's Hate Music Industry, released by the Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH), a US-based research organisation.
The report describes itself as the first comprehensive mapping of India’s hate music ecosystem and the role played by major technology companies in sustaining it.
According to the study, the identified songs contain content ranging from dehumanising language and religious slurs to explicit calls for violence against religious minorities, particularly Muslims and Christians. Researchers found 210 such songs on YouTube, 109 on Spotify, 103 in Meta’s Music Library and 101 on Apple Music.
The report states that the songs have attracted vast audiences across platforms. On YouTube alone, the identified tracks have collectively amassed more than 198 million views, while on Meta platforms, they have been used in over 5.9 million Instagram Reels. Nearly half of the songs hosted on YouTube were found to contain direct threats of violence or explicit incitement against Muslims.
CSOH argued that the content remains available despite violating the platforms’ own community standards and content moderation policies. The organisation further alleged that online platforms are not merely hosting the material but are also facilitating revenue generation through advertising and audience engagement tools.
Researchers documented advertisements from 103 brands appearing alongside hate music videos, including content identified as inciting violence.
The report also noted that YouTube’s “Super Thanks” feature was enabled on a majority of violative videos, allowing creators to receive financial contributions from viewers. One music channel identified in the study has also received YouTube’s Silver Creator Award.