This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 13, 2023 - November 19, 2023

Social media has democratised content, and content creators now play a significant role in shaping culture, influencing public sentiment and driving various forms of media and commerce. However, the power and ubiquity of online content has also cast a shadow, leading to widespread addictive use that in some cases cause bodily harm and death.

This raises the question: To what extent should these creators be held responsible for their content?

“Content creators should have a sense of responsibility and accountability over their content. The ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’ mindset applies, as well as a sense of community spirit,” says Rachel Gong, senior researcher at Khazanah Research Institute (KRI). 

There is no denying that content creators, which include influencers and key opinion leaders, hold sway over their audience, especially digital natives like Gen Z and young children.

A 2019 survey commissioned by the Lego Group in the UK revealed that children’s aspirations lean more towards becoming YouTubers than astronauts. This inclination is largely shaped by the content creators and influencers whom they admire, reported The Independent.

Last year, Pew Research found that up to 95% of teens in the US used at least one social media platform, while more than one-third said they used social media “almost constantly”. And in May this year, the New York Times reported on an advisory published by US surgeon general Dr Vivek Murthy that said the increasing use of social media had contributed to the rise in self-reports and clinical diagnoses of anxiety and depression among adolescents, along with emergency room visits for self-harm and suicidal ideation.

The primary challenge of social media and influencer culture is the rampant dissemination of misinformation.

According to research by The US National Library of Medicine, sharing of misinformation is habitual. Thanks to cues on the platform that do not require users to consciously consider the potential consequences of their actions, users develop the pattern of sharing information that captures the attention of others, which inadvertently leads to the spread of misinformation, says the research.

“People are currently being conditioned and rewarded by the norms of uncritically sharing information; more efforts are needed by governments, platforms and content creators to encourage information sharing habits that are more circumspect,” says Gong. 

While legal action can be taken against those who spread disinformation, misinformation or seditious content, or fan discord or even incite violence, there are few avenues for acting against irresponsible or errant content.

In some cases, users take it upon themselves to call out, boycott or publicly shame and ostracise prominent personalities for misdemeanours or statements that are perceived as offensive, controversial or inappropriate. Also referred to as “cancel culture”, this act holds people with significant influence accountable but it can also be misguided and result in censorship.

As far as allegedly harmful algorithms are concerned, legal action is already being taken to hold social media platforms accountable. In the US, a dozen states took Meta — the company that owns Facebook and Instagram — to court in October for allegedly harming young people’s mental health. The tech giant is being accused of deliberately engineering algorithms that cause children and teens to be addicted to social media, and for allegedly collecting data on children under 13 without informing their parents or obtaining parental consent.

Given the immense popularity of influencer marketing — which is projected to reach a whopping US$6.16 billion (RM28.7 billion) in 2023 alone, according to Insider Intelligence — there needs to be more stringent parameters, says Gong.

She cautions users to recognise that what they see on social media may not accurately depict real life.

“A balance needs to be found. The audience does need to do its part and be digitally and media literate, and critical and sceptical of things they see online, especially those that are hard to verify.

“Having trusted sources of information that are not social media is a good first step; for example, checking stories floating around on Whatsapp against news stories from reputable news sources, whether brands or individual reporters,” she adds. 

Gong acknowledges that it is unfair and unsustainable to put the entire cognitive load on the audience due to the huge amount of information that bombards users’ social media platforms daily. 

This is why she suggests that platforms, creators and regulators take a more proactive role in preventing potential misinformation. 

Content creator Sumitra Selvaraj, known for her love of sarees and spreading community awareness under the handle @sareesandstories on Instagram where she has over 70,000 followers, acknowledges the power words have in influencing people.

“I do think twice before hitting the share or post button. [But] I was not always mindful I think, when I first started my journey on Instagram. I felt that I could say anything I wanted, in any which way, because this was my platform.

“While I still believe that I can use my space to talk about what I choose, [I know now that] how I phrase my words matters,” says Sumitra, who is also a public relations and communications manager at the Breast Cancer Welfare Association Malaysia.

Gong suggests that social media platforms include pre-emptive pop-ups cautioning or encouraging content creators to think twice before posting. Researchers, for example, are trained to cite sources for reasons to combat the spread of misinformation, she informs.

“Platforms could require an additional ‘Are you sure you want to share this?’ button. Twitter used to have a question pop up if you wanted to share a link you hadn’t opened, and I think that was a good measure to slow people down and make them think about what they were doing,” she adds.

Similarly, Sumitra says she adds trigger warnings when speaking on topics that could upset people.

“I try to keep the viewpoint as balanced as possible. I try and write from a perspective of lived reality and make it clear that when I talk about controversial topics, it is my personal viewpoint that I’m sharing.

“I take personal responsibility for my actions. If I speak up about harassment on social media, for example, I position it as something that I do not welcome and will deal with. I don’t tell others that they should do the same. I don’t want people to feel bad reading my posts, I just want them to have something to think about.”

While social media platforms have guidelines, they are often sidestepped.

TikTok’s Community Guidelines state that users can post content that promotes a brand, product or service on the platform. However, users must turn on the content disclosure setting. This ensures that the content creator is transparent about the type of content being posted and helps build and maintain trust between TikTok users and advertisers. It can also let people know if a commercial relationship exists between the creator and a brand.

On Instagram, branded content or what is known as partnership ads is only available for business and creator accounts. Creators must tag the brand or business partner when posting branded content, whether posting from a creator, business or personal account. The addition of the paid partnership label is only available on the Instagram app.

When it comes to adhering to community guidelines, both platforms are strict with what is not permissible. For instance, hate speech, nudity and explicit content, harassment and bullying, violence, as well as illegal activities such as drug use will be moderated and taken down immediately.

For content that does not outwardly violate the platform guidelines, the onus is on users to flag and report the content for any violations or misdeeds. For instance, in June, netizens took to task a Malaysian teacher and social media influencer who violated her students’ privacy by using them as content props and for opening their bags without permission for the sake of creating paid content. 

While some supported the influencer, others believed she should exercise boundaries between her roles as a teacher and an influencer.

“In my opinion, influential people with large followings should be held to stricter standards and subject to more severe sanctions due to their disproportionate influence. The question is whether platforms have the will to take action, especially when some of these highly influential people are heads of states or corporate bigwigs.” says Gong.

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