The impact of influencers' transparency

Malaya Tindongan 

mt839718@ohio.edu 

It seems like advertisements are everywhere we look, even if we aren't looking for them. Hidden in plain sight, sometimes people are being advertised to despite knowing about it. Influencers' job is to be sponsored by companies and encourage their fans to buy the products. Transparency is essential to followers or audiences, and they want to know if someone is genuinely suggesting a product because it is good and they like it or if they are getting paid to push it. However, today there is an abundance of ways to trick people into seeing ads. An article from Ad Agency delves into the distrust of influencers not labeling their sponsored gifts as such. Kim Kardashian and her sisters are used as an example of celebrities endorsing products and failing to disclose that they were being paid or gifted the items. However, smaller influencers are also sometimes guilty of not adding the "#ad" or "#sponsered" to their posts of products. The less well-known influencers are micro-influencers, not having millions of followers but still gaining attention. Part of them being less well-known is less accountability for not addressing sponsorships. Although there are guidelines that the Federal Trade Commission must follow, disclosures must be clear, and the customer should understand them easily. A "thank you" to the brand does not count as a clear disclosure of the gift or sponsorship.

Courtesy of US Chamber of Commerce Although influencers may not always be honest with products, more dishonest acts take place. The New York Times brings up an influencer that has sparked some controversy. The influencer in question is Miquela Sousa, an average enough famous young woman on social media that produced music, worked with Prada, and even got a tattoo. However, she isn't real, and it took the company that created her(Brud) 2 years to reveal she was their publicity stunt. AI-type creations are not new; however, her acting as an influencer and as if she was a real person is new. The main issue that arises with the situation of Miquela Sousa is that it took so long for her purpose and creators to be introduced. Although it was clear to some that she was virtual, it was not clear to everyone, and it was not outright stated that she was a publicity stunt. The issue was not that she was virtual; it was the lack of transparency of her role as a character for advertisements. "My identity was a choice Brud made to sell me to brands..." she said in an Instagram post. Virtual characters as influencers could be the future. However, they should be presented as so.