Viral videos in Malaysia: understanding online sharing behaviour among students of International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)

Abstract

The emergence of Web 2.0 allows users to share information online. Since then, the world has been introduced to YouTube. YouTube is a video sharing website where people upload videos and write comments on the video. YouTube has been popular among people as it has become a platform where one can promote themselves as well as spread information on certain issues or for entertainment. Ever since the number of viral videos has risen, these videos have become one of the preferred methods of sharing information online. The question is what is it that makes videos become viral in Malaysia especially in the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)? This study attempts to answer questions about the categories of viral videos that students of IIUM share and the factors that make them share certain viral videos. Additionally, how Islamic teachings influence their sharing behaviour is also examined in this study. This study employs qualitative face-to-face interviews method to gather and analyse the data. The findings of the study show that students of the International Islamic University Malaysia prefer to share videos that are related to food, cooking and animals. In addition, videos that contain practical values and those that could bring an awareness to others are more likely to be shared by the students of IIUM. From an Islamic perspective, the study shows that IIUM students check the accuracy of the video contents before they share them online and also avoid sharing videos that contain the elements of fitnah and ‘aib.