Ducks in a Row: Influencing Fools
by Miki Saxon
There was a time that having influence meant something.
Maybe it still does in certain circles, but for much of the world it means you have millions, or at least hundreds of thousands, of followers on Instagram, YouTube and Twitter (Facebook seems to be passé).
They are called ‘influencers’ and their followers treat their words, actions, recommendations, and opinions as gospel.
In spite of the fact that many of them are paid to promote [whatever].
Of course, famous people have been paid to endorse products for decades.
The difference is that many influencers are famous only because they are expert manipulators of social media — or they pay experts to build their brand.
So. Not new and relatively harmless.
But not when they are built on a lie and involve your health or money.
[Yovana Mendoza] The 28-year-old influencer, also known as Rawvana, has amassed more than 3 million followers across YouTube and Instagram by extolling the life-changing properties of a raw vegan diet. (…) a couple of weeks ago, Mendoza was recorded eating seafood (…) Realising she was being filmed, she tried to hide the fish, but the jig was up.
Mendoza admitted she had stopped eating vegan for health reasons.
But she kept preaching the lifestyle.
There are dozens of similar stories and hundreds of influencers whose only true skill is self-promotion.
They talk about health; about money; about “living your best life.”
They talk to the millions of fools who follow them.
Image credit: Marco Raaphorst
