## Colophon tags:: [[process]] [[&article]] [[%tie]] [[atw]] [[%t]] [[uk]] [[societies]] [[i2]] [[creator economy]] url:: https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-05-05/a-devout-muslim-in-pakistan-is-making-a-living-from-islamophobic-ai-slop date:: [[2026-05-11]] %% title:: The devout Muslim making a living from Islamophobic AI slop type:: [[clipped-note]] file:: published:: author:: [[@]] [Click to Archive](https://web.archive.org/save/https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-05-05/a-devout-muslim-in-pakistan-is-making-a-living-from-islamophobic-ai-slop) %% archive:: ## Notes short:: - AI-generated videos spreading misinformation and Islamophobia have already become commonplace, especially in the wake of major news events. But this particular video was unusual. It had been posted by a devout Muslim man living in Pakistan. - He runs other accounts dedicated to sharing Quran verses and Islamic teachings. One features the Kaaba holy site in Mecca as its profile picture. He uses the title “Hafiz” before his name, an honorific reserved for those who have memorised the entire Quran. - But this case shows an even starker level of detachment between the creator and his posts: a Pakistani Muslim spreading content that portrays his religion as an existential threat to the west - When we contacted him, he spoke candidly about his work, insisting he hadn’t understood the videos due to his poor English. He then deleted many of the posts - And at the heart of the issue is the way Meta has incentivised the creation of hateful AI slop as it chases user engagement and ad revenue – while British Muslims suffer the consequences. - “This appalling example is yet more evidence of an ‘outrage economy’ where people are profiting from the poisonous narratives they push online, including those targeting Muslim Londoners,” said a spokesperson for the London mayor Sadiq Khan, who is a regular target in the man’s videos - When asked how he had learned these skills, he said he had paid other creators to learn monetisation strategies and watched YouTube tutorials, going as far as to send us an example - Sam Stockwell, a senior researcher at the Centre for Emerging Technology and Security, described how these tools are changing the online landscape. “Beyond the use of AI for political disinformation, we are seeing the emergence of a ‘shadow influencer’ economy,” he said. - “This model prioritises passive income over political ideology, turning divisive content into a profitable commodity. Exploiting the way social media algorithms prioritise high-engagement metrics, these creators are realising that xenophobic or anti-establishment narratives are the most efficient pathways to virality – and therefore money - Khan recently cited our previous investigation in a [keynote speech](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTwWU0Yia6w) at the Cambridge Disinformation Summit, calling it “shocking” that a man in Sri Lanka was profiting from “AI-generated content designed to stir up racial hatred in the UK”. > [!note] > the event’s name seems to suggest its position on disinformation? - Emily Darlington, a Labour MP who sits on the Science, Innovation and Technology select committee, said: “There’s clearly a market for hate content in the UK. When social media, intended to connect us, instead feeds us an endless stream of divisive and anger-fuelling content it distorts not only how we feel about our neighbours, but how we think the nation feels about our neighbours. - “What this particular case shows is how generative AI tools now fundamentally industrialise \[the creation of divisive content\],” said Stockwell. “The barrier to entry has collapsed – a creator no longer needs to be a graphic designer or even fluent in the language of the target country. - The Pakistani creator told us he has students who he teaches Facebook monetisation. While others, including the Sri Lankan influencer from our previous investigation, charge for these tutorials, he claims to do this for free.  - “Whatever knowledge I have, I share everything,” he said. “I don’t have any demand, I don’t have any greed, I don’t have any hopes for a reward … my only interest is that this person starts to make an earning.” ## Full text [[The devout Muslim making a living from Islamophobic AI slop - 20260511 - fulltext]]