Why do influencers exist in the internet age and is the trend a dangerous precursor to AI influence? Perhaps individuals don’t like to form their own opinion through research and broad exposure. Perhaps they would rather take on the opinion of someone they can easily relate to. Latching on to one or a limited amount of information sources is a great deal simpler and a lot less effort than dong any real work for themselves. Just watch specific TV networks and selected YouTubers and learn what you should think!
Is this a variation on the Fear of Missing Out or just an internet slant on celebrity endorsements. If it’s on the internet, everyone must be doing it and if the person is on the internet, they must be a celebrity. They even have their own dedicated YouTube channel!
Now don’t misunderstand what I’m saying here. Most of the information any of us is exposed to comes from some source. It may or may not be filtered or interpreted, and it may or may not be conveyed with a secondary or tertiary purpose in mind. If it is truly a factual description of something, give me the facts. If it’s an interpretation, tell me the filters and parameters that have created your specific version of the subject matter.
Don’t be influenced without a solid basis; Listen to information, form opinions and make decisions.
I don’t know how many surveys I’ve linked to on the internet that rank something from best to worst. Best states to retire in, best states to live in during retirement, best retirement states and so on. I’m OK with all of these as long as they define the word “BEST”. What is the criteria, how did the criteria get developed, how was the criteria weighted, how did the actual criteria get assessed, who was polled, how many people were interviewed, if any, and during what timeframe was the analysis done? Interestingly, if you search the internet for this item, there are many “best” answers.
So, who are you really and why should you influence me? The bottom line is that what an influencer may say should only be the beginning of a careful thought process before reaching a conclusion. These are some steps to take into account:
- Consider the source and know what credentials or standing a source may have
- Seek the same information from multiple sources to triangulate on or understand differences and why
- Check if anything has materially changed since the information was delivered at the source
- See if there are experts who can be consulted on a specific topic
- Try to understand biases and potential conflicts of interest from the information provider
- Exercise Critical Thinking for Yourself!
Now what is the right approach when an influencer is either assisted by an AI model or eventually an AI model becomes the influencer itself? All of the above remain true and clever people will probably add even more bullet points to the list. Social engineering, deep fakes, audio manipulation and other attempts at altering the perception of what is in fact real and factual will blur lines and muddy the waters and create even more need to do appropriate research and to eventually make informed decisions.
