WHEN INTOLERANT LANGUAGE CROWDS THE FEED: HOW DIGITAL DISCOURSES RECONSTRUCT RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN INDONESIA
Keywords:
intolerant language, religious freedom, digital spaceAbstract
This study explores how intolerant language circulating on TikTok and Instagram reshapes public understandings of religious freedom in Indonesia. Although previous research has mapped hate speech forms or explored media–religion relations, few studies have integrated linguistic, pragmatic, and ideological analyses to explain how intolerance operates as symbolic power in digital environments. This research addresses that gap by analysing how intolerant expressions are produced, circulated, and interpreted within high-engagement online controversies. The study employs a descriptive qualitative design using Critical Discourse Analysis and social pragmatics. The dataset consists of 480 comment units from 130 public accounts on TikTok, Instagram, and X, complemented by 12 online news texts collected between January 2023 and August 2025. Analytical procedures include linguistic categorisation, pragmatic mapping of speech acts, and ideological interpretation of discursive power. The findings show, first, that intolerant language functions as a symbolic authority that reinforces moral hegemony and marginalises alternative religious viewpoints. Second, algorithmic amplification shifts religious freedom from a rights-based principle toward a visibility-driven performance shaped by emotional engagement. Third, counter‑discourses promoting respect and equality receive limited circulation, indicating an asymmetrical discursive ecology. These results suggest that digital platforms not only host but also structure negotiations of religious freedom. The study concludes that strengthening critical linguistic literacy and improving content governance are essential for safeguarding pluralism in Indonesia’s digital public sphere.
Abstrak
Penelitian ini mengkaji bagaimana bahasa intoleran yang beredar di TikTok dan Instagram membentuk ulang pemahaman publik mengenai kebebasan beragama di Indonesia. Meskipun penelitian sebelumnya telah memetakan bentuk ujaran kebencian atau menelaah hubungan antara media dan agama, hanya sedikit studi yang mengintegrasikan analisis linguistik, pragmatik, dan ideologis untuk menjelaskan bagaimana intoleransi beroperasi sebagai kekuatan simbolik dalam lingkungan digital. Penelitian ini mengisi kekosongan tersebut dengan menganalisis bagaimana ekspresi intoleran diproduksi, disirkulasikan, dan ditafsirkan dalam kontroversi daring yang memiliki tingkat interaksi tinggi. Studi ini menggunakan desain kualitatif deskriptif dengan pendekatan Analisis Wacana Kritis dan pragmatik sosial. Dataset terdiri atas 480 unit komentar dari 130 akun publik di TikTok, Instagram, dan X, dilengkapi dengan 12 teks berita daring yang dikumpulkan antara Januari 2023 hingga Agustus 2025. Prosedur analisis meliputi kategorisasi linguistik, pemetaan tindak tutur secara pragmatik, dan interpretasi ideologis terhadap dinamika kekuasaan dalam wacana. Temuan menunjukkan, pertama, bahwa bahasa intoleran berfungsi sebagai otoritas simbolik yang memperkuat hegemoni moral dan meminggirkan pandangan keagamaan alternatif. Kedua, amplifikasi algoritmik menggeser kebebasan beragama dari prinsip berbasis hak menuju performativitas yang ditentukan oleh visibilitas dan resonansi emosional. Ketiga, wacana tandingan yang mempromosikan rasa hormat dan kesetaraan memperoleh sirkulasi yang terbatas, menandakan ekologi wacana yang tidak seimbang. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa platform digital tidak hanya menjadi ruang ekspresi, tetapi juga struktur yang membentuk negosiasi kebebasan beragama. Studi ini menyimpulkan bahwa penguatan literasi linguistik kritis dan peningkatan tata kelola konten sangat penting untuk menjaga pluralisme dalam ruang publik digital Indonesia
Downloads
References
Ajala, A. T., & Alayinde, J. A. (2025). Language, identity, and religious bigotry: A critical discourse analysis of cyberbullying in Nigeria. International Journal of Literature, Language and Linguistics. https://doi.org/10.52589/ijlll-qx1sdhvs
Al-Jarf, R. (2022). Sectarian language and perception of the “Other” after the Arab Spring. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Brasov. Series IV: Philology and Cultural Studies, 29–46. https://doi.org/10.31926/but.pcs.2022.64.15.2.2
Anas, M., Saraswati, D., Ikhsan, M. A., & Fiaji, N. A. (2025). Acceptance of “the Others” in religious tolerance: Policies and implementation strategies in the inclusive city of Salatiga, Indonesia. Heliyon, 11(2), e41826. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2025.e41826
Arango, A., Pérez, J., & Poblete, B. (2019). Hate lingo: A target-based linguistic analysis of hate speech in social media. ACM Transactions on the Web, 13(3), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1145/3341215
Ayeni, A. C. (2025). Speech act analysis of hate utterances on selected social media platforms in Nigeria. International Journal of Innovative Research and Development. https://doi.org/10.24940/ijird/2024/v13/i12/dec24021
Barrot, J. S. (2022). Social media as a language learning environment: A systematic review of the literature (2008–2019). Computer Assisted Language Learning, 35(9), 2534–2562. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2021.1883673
van Dijk, T. A. (2024). Interview with Teun A. van Dijk. ASp, 86, 143–150. https://doi.org/10.4000/12ry4
Drożdżowicz, A., & Peled, Y. (2024). The complexities of linguistic discrimination. Philosophical Psychology, 37(6), 1459–1482. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515089.2024.2307993
Durrheim, K., & Schuld, M. (2025). Polarization on social media: Comparing the dynamics of interaction networks and language-based opinion distributions. Political Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.70000
Eriksson Krutrök, M., & Lindgren, S. (2022). Social media amplification loops and false alarms: Towards a sociotechnical understanding of misinformation during emergencies. The Communication Review, 25(2), 81–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/10714421.2022.2035165
Fathi, S. (2024). Revisiting Brown and Levinson’s theory of politeness. European Journal of Language and Culture Studies, 3(5), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.24018/ejlang.2024.3.5.137
Gagrčin, E., Naab, T. K., & Grub, M. F. (2024). Algorithmic media use and algorithm literacy: An integrative literature review. New Media & Society. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448241291137
Gantina, T. S. (n.d.). Siapa “Mbak Jum” dalam konflik Sahara vs Yai Mim? Kini ikut disorot. Metropolitan. https://www.metropolitan.id/berita-hari-ini/95316038120/siapa-mbak-jum-dalam-konflik-sahara-vs-yai-mim-kini-ikut-disorot
Hefni, W. (2020). Moderasi beragama dalam ruang digital: Studi pengarusutamaan moderasi beragama di Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam Negeri. Jurnal Bimas Islam, 13(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.37302/jbi.v13i1.182
Husein, F., & Slama, M. (2018). Online piety and its discontent: Revisiting Islamic anxieties on Indonesian social media. Indonesia and the Malay World, 46, 80–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639811.2018.1415056
Ismail, A. M., & Mujani, W. K. (2020). Had kebebasan bersuara dalam hak kebebasan beragama di Malaysia: Limits of expression in religious freedom rights in Malaysia. The Sultan Alauddin Sulaiman Shah Journal, 7(2), 176–192. http://jsass.kuis.edu.my/index.php/jsass/article/view/148
Karimah, A., & Wijayanti, P. H. (2023). Language in digital media: The phenomenon of language hybridity analysis. KnE Social Sciences. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v8i7.13234
Khaerun Rijaal, M. A. (2021). Fenomena intoleransi antar umat beragama serta peran sosial media akun Instagram Jaringan Gusdurian Indonesia dalam menyampaikan pesan toleransi. Syiar: Jurnal Komunikasi dan Penyiaran Islam, 1(2), 103–132. https://doi.org/10.54150/syiar.v1i2.41
Kosasih, E. (2019). Literasi media sosial dalam pemasyarakatan sikap moderasi beragama. Jurnal Bimas Islam, 12(2), 263–296. https://doi.org/10.37302/jbi.v12i2.118
Leśniczak, R. (2023). Hate speech from the perspective of the mediatization of religion in the post-secular age. Methaodos. Revista de Ciencias Sociales, 11(1), 87–101. https://doi.org/10.17502/m.rcs.v11i1.635
Linando, J. A., Tumewang, Y. K., Nahda, K., & Nurfauziah. (2023). The dynamic effects of religion: An exploration of religiosity influences on Islamic work ethic over time. Cogent Business & Management, 10(1), 2181127. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2023.2181127
Maarouf, A., Pröllochs, N., & Feuerriegel, S. (2022). The virality of hate speech on social media. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 8, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1145/3641025
Macias Urrego, J. A., Garcia Pineda, V., & Montoya Restrepo, L. A. (2024). The power of social media in the decision-making of current and future professionals: A crucial analysis in the digital era. Cogent Business & Management, 11(1), 2421411. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2421411
Mu’ti, A., & Burhani, A. N. (2019). The limits of religious freedom in Indonesia: With reference to the first pillar of Pancasila. Indonesian Journal of Islam and Muslim Societies, 9(1), 111–134. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijims.v9i1.111-134
Ningrum, D. J., Suryadi, S., & Wardhana, D. E. C. (2019). Kajian ujaran kebencian di media sosial. Jurnal Ilmiah Korpus, 2(3), 241–252. https://doi.org/10.33369/jik.v2i3.6779
Ramdhani, J., & Komara, I. (n.d.). Permintaan maaf ASN Bekasi usai protes tetangga doa bersama. DetikNews. https://news.detik.com/berita/d-7556905/permintaan-maaf-asn-bekasi-usai-protes-tetangga-doa-bersama
Rathje, S., Van Bavel, J. J., & van der Linden, S. (2021). Out-group animosity drives engagement on social media. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2024292118
Reiland, I. (2024). Austin vs. Searle on locutionary and illocutionary acts. Inquiry, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/0020174X.2024.2380322
Roshid, M. M., & Chowdhury, R. (2024). Power dynamics in Business English as a lingua franca discourse. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly, 87(3), 432–461. https://doi.org/10.1177/23294906231165275
Sapir, M. (2024). Religious ideologies of minimal computing: Negotiating digital technology in religious nationalist education. Learning, Media and Technology, 49(5), 780–793. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2024.2410782
Schmid, U. K. (2023). Humorous hate speech on social media: A mixed-methods investigation of users’ perceptions and processing of hateful memes. New Media & Society, 27, 1588–1606. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448231198169
Stolz, J., De Graaf, N. D., Hackett, C., & Antonietti, J.-P. (2025). The three stages of religious decline around the world. Nature Communications, 16(1), 7202. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62452-z
Sutrisno, A. (2022). Fenomena intoleransi antar umat beragama dan peran sosial media (Akun Instagram Gusdurian). Jurnal Syiar Dakwah dan Komunikasi Islam, 10(2), 112–127. https://doi.org/10.47498/syiar.v10i2.41
Syahid, A., Sudana, D., & Bachari, A. D. (2022). Perundungan siber bermuatan penistaan agama di media sosial yang berdampak hukum: Kajian linguistik forensik. Semantik, 11(1), 17–32. https://doi.org/10.22460/semantik.v11i1.p17-32
Tatala, M., Klamut, R., & Timoszyk-Tomczak, C. (2024). Personal aspects of religiosity and civic engagement: The mediating role of prayer. Religions, 15(2), 192. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15020192
Triadi, R. B., & Nur, A. M. (2024). Metode penelitian bahasa (1st ed.). Langgam Pustaka.
Valencia, J. (n.d.). Usut kasus “Perkara Lahan” Yai Mim & Sahara, ke mana ujungnya? Kompas TV. https://www.kompas.tv/nasional/622968/full-usut-kasus-perkara-lahan-yai-mim-sahara-ke-mana-ujungnya
Verkuyten, M., Yogeeswaran, K., & Adelman, L. (2018). Intergroup toleration and its implications for culturally diverse societies. Social Issues and Policy Review, 13, 5–35. https://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12051
Zaluchu, S. E., Widodo, P., & Kriswanto, A. (2025). Conceptual reconstruction of religious moderation in the Indonesian context based on previous research: Bibliometric analysis. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 11, 101552. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101552
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2025 Heni Hanipah, Dakia N. Djou, Muslimin
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
