Who are ‘misinfluencers’ and why to keep them off one’s digital feed

A six-episode series Apple Cider Vinegar on Netflix had caught the attention of many viewers last year. The plot revolved around the real-life story of an Australian health influencer Belle Gibson who allegedly faked having brain cancer and created a well articulated story about how she cured it through alternative medicine.

The story moved people and brought her followers and fame until she got busted for creating a vast pool of health-related misinformation.

Likewise, many content creators on Instagram proposed a cure to a medical condition PMOS (Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome) for which there is none in the medical world.

When a person with some established social influence tends to opinionate on a topic for which they lack foundational knowledge or expertise — researchers call them misinfluencers.

The term closely relates to ‘influencers’ who are people having influence over the attitudes and behaviours of others.

As per a study, influencers are important for information diffusion by which new ideas are circulated into small social communities like social media channels or even in smaller people groups.

They have a pivotal role to play in how a piece of information is received, interpreted and exercised within a social network.

For instance, multiple health influencers on social media channels are trying to decode the public health risk associated with Hantavirus outbreak or the ongoing Ebola outbreak. The information could be accurate based on facts or just assumptions triggering fear mongering among people.

But the real risk lies in separating influencers from misinfluencers, the latter emerging as a threat to public health.

Why do people listen to misinfluencers?

As per an article in the Journal of Health Communication, for misinfluencers to have an influence over others, they need to be seen as honest and trustworthy.

These people often share information from a place of perceived authenticity, creating trust in others without formal expertise in the subject matter.

As per The Conversation, they often speak on issues which are sensational and topical at the moment – a discovery, a crisis or even a controversy.

In recent years, the increased usage of social media, algorithm based content circulation and rise of AI-driven content has boosted the information world.

The misinfluencers mostly share information to stir sensationalism and gain popularity or monetary benefits.

A study suggests that popularity is often viewed as a proxy for trust. Likewise, a large followership can make misinfluencers seem authentic.

The misinfluencer who has a strong follower base and has established a trust within a community has the potential to spread the most misinformation, said the study.

What must be done?

As per experts, the integration of a social stress indicator can help prevent some harm from these non-informed celebrities.

This can be exercised by flagging any post or content that can stir negative emotions to the point it turns into a social stress, typically around topics that are sensitive or provocative.

Other two ways are to increase digital literacy among the audience who can demarcate genuine information from overamplified half truths and at policy level executing more accountability for promoting false information.