An Open Letter to Influencers
I’m not sure how many of you so-called influencers will read this. To be honest, if at least one reads this, I’d be more than pleased. So here it goes:
Dear influencers,
I don’t get why there are so many of you these days in more arbitrary forms than ever. All I ever know of influencers are the “classic” archetypes: movie stars, artists (music, visual media, writing, all that), fashion models, and athletes. These days there are suddenly TikTok stars, Instagram models, YouTube creators, viral Tweeters. It’s like if everybody makes content that’s interesting and viral enough, the world declares you an influencer. Plus points if you are good-looking, of course.
Now, this letter is addressed to influencers of any type. If you somehow impact the life of many by your content or work, this is for you. There are going to be three points that I’d like to say to you influencers. I’ll start first by saying this: stop being and acting idiotic. It’s a simple and fair request. You have people that follow you, who wait patiently for your contents, who practically worship your existence and works. These people listen to you more than they listen to public opinion, their friends and family, and even themselves. There are people out there who take what you do, say, wear, eat, listen to, and all that as something they have to try for themselves. As your “title” suggests, you’re an influencer. What you do influences others. Use your platform wisely.
The second thing I want to say ties into the paragraph above: I know many people are skeptical about public figures and influencers being educators, but you have the platform and should have the conscience to do so. Be on the right side of history. Break cynical opinions and be actual influencers for good purposes. You can’t just “Imagine” your way in the pandemic. You can’t sit still and be silent against the injustices, especially in the entertainment industry. If you think your career and fame matter more than human decency, then screw you.
The third and final thing I’m going to say is: fame and virality can only do you so much and carry you so far. “Bad publicity is publicity” is not a sentence that always goes well for you, especially with the ever-present cancel culture that’s going on. Yes, cancel culture is not accountability and we should push for accountability more, but people and sponsors can be so quick and easy to cancel and drop you. Anyway. There’s every chance that you’ll be viral and famous for the wrong reasons at any point in your career. Make your fame, virality, platform, and influence a positive one.
At the end of the day, these are my expectations of you. This letter might represent a lot of people’s feelings about you, but it might also be just another rant and unpopular opinion by a nobody on the Internet. If you’re an influencer and don’t think that what I say above matters, thank you for reading, and just move on. If you’re an influencer and you think what I say has a point, then go out there and be the type of influencer that’s not all about clout.
Thank you for reading, trust no one, and see you on the next post.
