#1 AN INTRODUCTION
By: Reality Check
Tags: Post Truth, Politics, Transparency, Fake News, Authenticity

Written by Luke Fenech.

We all live in a special age of information. The data that is being processed and shared every second mark a new era in history. In fact, from the mid-20th century since, the advent of the Information Age changed things.

Despite Messenger’s prompt messages, and Twitter’s swift updates, some information is better to be sent slower, but well. To suffice this argument, let us have a look at how authenticity and transparency are key for quality information conveyed by influential people and institutions around the globe on their social media accounts.

But what do we mean by authenticity?

Almost every person who uses social media consistently is trying to market his or herself in one way or another, thus this platform isn’t exclusively for marketers. Be it politicians, educational institutions, sports associations, or even the average Joe who is trying to showcase his Candy Crush high score. Moreover, we are all trying to sell something to the outside world — ourselves. The issue, however, is that some of this information is not genuine or true.

According to Christopher Connors, “to be authentic, we must cultivate the courage to be imperfect — and vulnerable” (Connors, 2017). It suggests that we have to show our true and thus authentic selves out there, something that only a few are capable of doing. But how is this so?

It all falls to one’s ego: sacrificing genuineness for a flawless online reputation.

People are so keen on portraying the best version of themselves, that they leave no room for any imperfections or hindrances which might affect their prominence. Unfortunately, this leads to misinformation and deception in some organisations or individuals’ content.

This phenomenon is far from being eliminated. People all around the globe will still try to up-sell themselves even for the expense of not telling the truth. Nevertheless, what we can do as content consumers, is to educate ourselves to spot as much unreliability as possible. Yet the million-dollar question is, how can we do that?

By bringing up some examples of information coming from different sources, be it articles, blogs, online news portals, or any other kind of social media, and exposing a lack of authenticity within, we will be empowering the reader, by generating awareness and providing means how to identify non-authentic content. Moreover, one can start joining the dots and think critically when reading prospective articles from the same people or institutions who lacked trustworthiness before. Here at Reality Check, we will take the guesswork out of the equation and provide you directly with these type of articles so that you can start inspecting information, and not just consuming.

And what about transparency?

Have you ever read only a part of the story? Or have been exposed to fake news? Worse, been involved in a scam? These experiences are all intertwined into the notion of transparency online. As we’ll see, both authenticity and transparency share similar agendas concerning content on social media. Keynote speaker John Hall argues:

“When you’re transparent, you invite trust by revealing that you have nothing to hide. You establish yourself as an honest, credible person in the eyes of others.”

Often, leaders and organisations around the world have a tough time maintaining a transparent ethos. Some of the content they produce tend to come out of their wallet, instead of their mouth. Moreover, consumers are more than ever prone to nontransparent media by different entities and individuals. Reality Check will bring up examples of this type of content present on social media, also by referring and linking with both academic material and opinionated articles which have already dealt with this present-day threat.

1. The Pandemic and an Infodemic

In one of our blogs, we shall discuss how the pandemic is currently holding hands with another phenomenon — an infodemic. As we’ll see, this ‘infodemic’ is also a result of the post-truth reality that has been troubling global democracies for the past decade. One of our writers elaborated:

“Social media are very effective channels of communication and act as fertile ground for the flow of misinformation.”

This blog will discuss the rumours, stigma, and conspiracy theories related to COVID-19 which are indeed a threat to the credibility of governments and international health agencies.

2. Transparency in social media: a deep dive on influencer marketing

The second blog which we will share with you involves the notorious world of digital marketing and its power on social media. More specifically:

- The effects of influencer transparency on production efficiency and purchase intentions.

- The relationships management through social media influencers.

- Social media influencers and the production of the sponsored content through the use of ethics of authenticity.

- Consumer insights on social media influencers — are marketing influencers being authentic to their audience?

- The importance of gaining trust from the audience.

3. The lack of transparency in news around sports athletes

Dear sports zealots out there,

Sports is one of the largest markets around the globe. In our third blog, a closer eye on the content posted on sports athletes (concerning transparency and authenticity) will be examined. Doping and the athlete’s controversial relationships are one of the main subtopics which we will be sharing.

4. Social media and Politics

Politics is an age-old activity found everywhere. Now with social media, politicians can disperse their messages swiftly to everybody online. Alas, politicians and social media are both subject to obscure and manipulative information. Many politicians have increased their online presence through a social media campaign. For example, Donald Trump ignored traditional media and used Twitter as his main source of communication. Reality Check will have a look at Trump and other politicians to check when transparency and authenticity have contended.

This blog is a project for Study Unit MCS3953, University of Malta.