Are influencers more trustworthy than politicians?

When I was a teenager, social media was still in a state of blissful infancy, before it evolved beyond providing a filter that made you look like a dog. For young people today things are a bit more complicated and being able to identify fake news and misinformation is an essential part of online safety, not least because, according to BBC Bitesize, 47 per cent of young people trust social media as a news source.  

BBC Bitesize and Survation recently collaborated on a survey of 2,019 children aged 11-16 in the UK as part of a renewed focus on online safety. They found that young people rely on social media for the news, even if they don’t entirely trust it. TikTok is the top-ranking social media platform for news (30 per cent compared to Twitter’s six per cent), yet only 31 per cent of respondents trust the content. 

Though TikTok ranks above other social media platforms, young people still trust Channel 4, ITV, BBC and newspapers more than any social media. Despite this, when asked who they would turn to if they wanted to check the validity of a news story, 35 per cent chose social media influencers. 

It reveals a strange pressure that is both unwarranted and worrying. If someone has established an online platform due to their interest in fashion, working out or cooking, they do not necessarily have any better grasp of how to identify and avoid amplifying fake news than the young person looking to them for reassurance. 

This was a lesson we learned over and over during the pandemic when certain influencers posted anti-vax messaging on their social media platforms. In July 2021, it was even revealed that an anonymous client was using an agency to pay influencers to spread disinformation about the vaccines.

So why are influencers trusted by young people? Well to start with, the alternatives are hardly much better.

A moral compass might have been on the job description for politicians once upon a time, but these days their scandals can be found in tabloids more frequently than celebrities’. As a result, just one per cent of young people would trust politicians to tell the truth about the news, less than influencers (at five per cent). 

This sets a dangerous precedent for the future of political engagement among young people. How will parties convince young people to show up to the ballot box if they can’t prove they are trustworthy about what is happening in the news? If young people are already disenchanted with politicians and politics before they can even vote, there is a serious issue at play. 

Parents might find their children idolising influencers worrying (and for good reason) but just like anything on the internet, social media platforms can be used as a force for good. For every anti-vaxxer spreading misinformation, there’s someone like Marcus Rashford using his platform for social change or Kwajo Tweneboa using social media to put pressure on authorities to improve social housing crises or Sophia Smith Galer educating others by tapping into the potential of journalism told through social media. 

Even so, influencers will never — and should never — be expected to fulfil anywhere near the same role as a politician. The BBC has shone a light on an issue in British politics that needs to be fixed urgently. Politicians must stop alienating young people before they cost us a working democracy.