A UNESCO study has uncovered significant gaps in how content creators verify and share information online. The research, surveying 500 creators across 45 countries, revealed that 62% of influencers don’t verify content before sharing it with their followers.
The study found that most influencers evaluate source credibility through popularity, with 41% using likes and views as their primary metric. Only 17% prioritize documentation and evidence when assessing information reliability.
Despite this lack of rigorous fact-checking, 69% of surveyed influencers believe they are promoting critical thinking and digital literacy. Approximately 60% rely on personal experiences as their primary information source, while 40% use personal research and interviews.
The implications are significant, especially considering that 40% of young Americans aged 18 to 29 regularly get news from influencers. Most of these content creators have never worked for a news organization and lack formal training in source verification.
Social media platforms have further complicated the issue by reducing content moderation. Platforms like X and YouTube have minimal fact-checking mechanisms, allowing potentially misleading information to spread quickly.
The study also highlighted transparency issues, with 53% of influencers creating sponsored content and 7% failing to disclose sponsorships. This lack of transparency extends to information sourcing, with influencers rarely relying on official government reports or documents.
UNESCO emphasized an urgent need to enhance creators’ media and information literacy skills. The research comes in the context of recent political events, including the 2024 US presidential election, where influencers played a crucial role in information dissemination.
The findings underscore the growing challenge of misinformation in the digital age, where popularity often trumps accuracy, and personal experience is valued over systematic fact-checking.
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