Instagram Influencer Advertising and Minors

By: Brooke Robinette

Page seven of The Principles and Practices for Advertising Ethics lists principle number five as: “Advertisers should treat consumers fairly based on the nature of the audience to whom the ads are directed and the nature of the product or service advertised”.  In recent years, Instagram has been a popular spot for weight-loss posts by accounts with large fan bases. The posts are marked as advertisements but are presented as advice to the account followers and they often feature unrealistic body standards. These accounts, many times owned by celebrities like Khloe Kardashian and Cardi B, offer endorsements for products that could be dangerous for young people or people with eating disorders. These endorsements have been criticized by actress and body-positivity promoter Jameela Jamil through her “I Weigh” Instagram campaign, web community, and podcast.

@khloekardashian Instagram

Last year, Instagram instituted a policy that blocks these types of weight loss advertisements from minors. The policy is in line with the Principles and Practices for Advertising principle. The principle (page 7) is pertinent when it comes to children. The principle states that children are “especially vulnerable by virtue of their inexperience, immaturity, susceptibility to being misled or unduly influenced, and lack of cognitive skills to evaluate the credibility of advertising”.  As Jamil points out in her petition against the celebrity advertisement of quick weight-loss products, “Celebrities who produce and support weight loss ads for payment, do so because brands have realized how influential their posts are with young people”.  Her petition and supporters helped to spur action from Instagram.

@thekylierussell Instagram

The policy instituted by Instagram to protect young followers is a step in the right direction but as Cara Rosebloom in her Washington Post article points out, the policy does not go far enough. Rosenbloom states that she used her daughter’s phone and searched “weight loss” on Instagram. She writes: “While there were definitely some blocked posts (a grayscale square pops up saying the ad is blocked and asks the user to confirm they are over 18), there are plenty of remaining pictures about how to “lose fat fast” or “make protein shakes” that could easily lead any teenager to follow harmful dieting advice.”

Rosenbloom wrote that Ysabel Gerrard, an expert in digital media who helped draft the new Instagram policy, said that this policy is the first step in series of moves that will be made to protect minors on Instagram. The next steps will likely target “miraculous claims” made by advertisers and updated guidelines for moderators. These changes are being implemented, according to Gerrard, to “protect people whose bodies are still developing”. This is an important move for the protection of young people because as Rosenbloom makes clear in her article, of the 1 billion Instagram users, 72% are teenagers. As these policies are implemented, the hope is that these young users will be shielded from the influence of advertisers on their developing minds and bodies.