“Blur the Preacher”: Media Remix and Digital Technocultural Practice in Pakistan”

Abstract This paper explores the transformative effect of remix practices on media production in Pakistan, focusing on the integration of Internet memes, Islamic religious sermons, and political speeches in novel cultural critiques. Using Critical Technocultural Discourse Analysis, it is observed that digital remix tools enable the incorporation of typically Islamically censured media elements, including Western electronic music samples, local controversial memes, and digitally available Muslim devotional content. These are creatively remixed into YouTube videos that often go viral, representing alternative Pakistani Muslim identities. The study argues that this negotiation generates a digital media environment open to sampling diverse media content, creating unprecedented meanings that challenge traditional regional media production norms. The values and meanings ascribed to these remixes are then analyzed, probing their influence on shaping audience perceptions. In conclusion, media remix is presented as a particular competency, acquired through participation in the constrained yet networked digital media environment of Pakistan.