In Pakistan, the political discourse has notably shifted from mainstream media platforms to independent political vlogs and digital channels, with significant growth observed in 2024.
In 2024, more than 130 political vloggers contributed to the trend by uploading over 85,000 videos. These videos amassed over 4.8 billion views, underscoring a substantial shift in audiences turning to political content.
Imran Riaz Khan stood out among the vloggers with extraordinary viewership, attracting over 500 million views and gaining over 1 million new subscribers. Other notable channels included Naya Pakistan, which garnered over 300 million views, while channels run by Mansoor Ali and Sabir Shakir each accumulated more than 200 million views. Channels operated by Makhdoom Shahab, Shahbaz Gill, Sadiq Jan, and Abdul Qadir also performed well, surpassing the 100 million views mark.
| Rank | Channel | Total Views | Channel | AVG Views/Video | Channel | Subs Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Imran Riaz Khan | 509,567,982 | Imran Riaz Khan | 808,838 | Imran Riaz Khan | 1,450,000 |
| 2 | Naya Pakistan | 316,774,113 | Shahbaz Gill | 307,672 | Mansoor Ali Khan | 707,000 |
| 3 | Mansoor Ali Khan | 278,594,004 | Raftar | 270,151 | Naya Pakistan | 600,000 |
| 4 | Sabir Shakir | 223,542,983 | Sabir Shakir | 196,608 | Shahbaz Gill | 575,000 |
| 5 | Makhdoom Shahab | 180,069,621 | Dr. Moeed Pirzada | 141,058 | Raftar | 529,000 |
| 6 | Shahbaz Gill | 176,603,752 | Siddique Jaan | 139,985 | Sabir Shakir | 460,000 |
| 7 | Charsadda Jrnlst | 119,711,857 | GVS News | 139,733 | Charsadda Jrnlst | 407,000 |
| 8 | Siddique Jaan | 114,507,842 | Orya Maqbool Jan | 127,309 | Makhdoom Shahab | 390,000 |
| 9 | Abdul Qadir | 114,441,102 | Makhdoom Shahab | 121,587 | Abdul Qadir | 383,000 |
| 10 | Sabee Kazmi | 89,523,672 | Sami Ibrahim | 118,202 | Siddique Jaan | 301,000 |
| 11 | Usama Ghazi | 86,189,908 | Mansoor Ali Khan | 112,427 | Irshad Bhatti | 298,000 |
| 12 | Sami Ibrahim | 86,169,536 | Abdul Qadir | 111,650 | Sami Ibrahim | 290,000 |
| 13 | NTV-PK | 84,761,306 | Syed Ali Haider | 100,554 | NTV-PK | 264,000 |
| 14 | Umar Daraz | 70,135,175 | Sabee Kazmi | 99,140 | Syed Ali Haider | 250,000 |
| 15 | Pak Tv24 | 70,074,601 | TV Pakistan | 98,099 | Haroon Natamam | 230,000 |
| 16 | Rana Azeem | 69,100,097 | Fayyaz Raja | 94,500 | Jameel Farooqui | 228,000 |
| 17 | Waqar Malik | 67,508,947 | Waqar Malik | 85,454 | Fayyaz Raja | 224,000 |
| 18 | Haroon Natamam | 65,422,865 | NTV-PK | 85,273 | Sabee Kazmi | 219,000 |
| 19 | Fayyaz Raja | 63,031,782 | Wajahat S. Khan | 85,011 | Samina Pasha | 216,000 |
| 20 | Raftar | 58,082,552 | Irshad Bhatti | 76,944 | Dr. Moeed Pirzada | 202,000 |
A notable trend was the pronounced viewership supremacy of vlogs associated with the Tehreek-e-Insaf narrative. These vlogs represent over 80% of all viewership, which suggests a strong audience preference for content that aligns with or supports the views and political position of Tehreek-e-Insaf.
Regarding demographic diversity among the top content creators, the list of those who saw the most subscriber growth was predominantly male. However, Samina Pasha emerged as a notable exception, being the only woman to rank among the top 20 for subscriber growth. Her presence underscores the emerging role of female political commentators in Pakistan’s digital space, though it also highlights the gender gap that still exists within this burgeoning field.
This shift towards digital platforms for political commentary in Pakistan illustrates changing viewer preferences and points to the broader democratization of information and the rise of individual content creators in shaping public opinion.
