Influencers and honesty (B1/B2)

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Warmer

1. Who do you follow on social media? Have you ever bought something because a person online recommended it?

2. What is the difference between an influencer promoting something and an advertisement?

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The numbers game

Guess with a partner, then check your answers below:

1. What share of paid influencer posts are correctly labelled as advertising?

a. about 75% b. about half c. about a quarter

2. What can an account with a million followers charge for a single post?

a. €100 b. €1,000 c. €10,000+

3. In surveys, which source do teenagers say they trust most for product advice?

a. friends b. influencers c. journalists

Which answer surprised you? Which one worries you?

Answers: 1c · 2c · 3b — studies find only a minority of paid posts are properly labelled; friends still win for everything else.

Two documents from the same case. Read both, then decide: which one is more honest?

DOCUMENT 1 · THE POST

DOCUMENT 2 · THE RULING

hi loves … addressing the drama because you deserve my truth <3 yes the SlimTea posts were a "partnership" but I would NEVER promote something I don't personally vibe with. the "before" photo being edited is honestly a lighting thing?? I'm taking accountability and going on a healing journey away from this app (back monday). also my legal team says to say #ad on the old posts so. #ad I guess :') love you all so much, be kind xoxo

The Authority finds that the influencer received €4,300 per post and failed to declare it in 11 of 12 cases; that "before and after" images were digitally altered; and that the product's health claims have no scientific basis. Analysis of the account's audience shows a median follower age of 14. The influencer is fined €12,000 and required to display corrections for 30 days. The brand, which drafted the posts and approved the images, is fined €9,000 and has announced a new partnership with a different influencer.

Comprehension

Language detective

1. Find three facts in Document 2 that Document 1 hides, softens or "re-brands".

2. Who wrote the posts, according to the ruling? Why does that detail matter?

3. What does the median follower age change about the whole story?

In Document 1, underline:

1. two phrases in quotation marks doing suspicious work

2. the sentence where her lawyers become visible

3. every word that makes a business sound like a friendship

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Words to steal

Build the missing word. Each needs a prefix: dis- · mis- · un-

1. She failed to _______close the payment. (= reveal openly)

2. The advert was ruled deliberately _______leading.

3. Eleven of the posts were _______declared.

4. The photos were edited — false advertising, or just _______trustworthy marketing?

5. Her follower numbers were later shown to be partly _______real: 30% bots.

6. The brand claims it was _______aware of the editing. Nobody believes them.

Which prefix means badly/wrongly? Which means not? Which reverses an action? Make one more word with each.

Your call

Who is most responsible in each case — and what should happen? Rank the guilty parties:

1. A fitness influencer promotes a diet product she has never used. A 15-year-old follower gets ill. Influencer · brand · platform · parents?

2. A dentist with a big account praises a toothpaste. He genuinely likes it — and is paid — and doesn't say so.

3. Parents run a Youtube channel starring their kids. It pays the mortgage. The kids say they love it. The kids are six and nine.

4. An influencer is offered double to not disclose a payment. She refuses and posts the offer publicly. The brand sues her for breach of confidentiality.

Discussion

1. "Everyone knows the game" — do followers actually mind undisclosed ads, or only pretend to when someone's caught?

2. Should child influencers be banned outright, or protected like child actors — hours, savings accounts, the right to delete everything at 18?

3. The brand walked away and hired a new face. Design the punishment that would actually change brand behaviour.

4. Is "de-influencing" (telling followers what not to buy) honest — or the same business with a moral costume?

Homework

Rewrite Document 1 as the apology she should have posted — keep her voice, lose the lies.

Maximum 60 words, minimum one <3.

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An honest apology names the harm out loud. See how close you can get.