A new ad campaign on online safety by Google in collaboration with the Union Government featuring logos of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, MeitY’s campaign Stay Safe Online and G20 2023, being hosted by India, has stirred a row over featuring social media influencers
CA Rachna Ranade is a famous Instagram finfluencer, who gives tips on financial topics such as personal investment, taxation and more. She has more than over 9 lakh Instagram followers on her verified account. Along with other social media influencers, Rachna Ranade featured in the ad aimed at increasing awareness about fake news on social media
“There are real as well as fake experts on the Internet. Spotting the difference between the two can be tricky. So, before you trust any self-proclaimed expert, know a little more about them,” read CA Rachna Ranade portion in the ad on the front page of newspapers
Soon after, several experts started sharing this ad. Veteran journalist Sucheta Dalal, who is famous for uncovering the 1992 securities scam, based on which Harshit Mehta-starrer Scam 1992 was produced, tweeted while slamming the ad
Union Minister of State for Electronics & Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar tweeted, “Just to be very clear - this is not an endorsement of any person or any social media platform. GoI MeitY encourages all digital platforms to create awareness of Safe&Trust And Accountable Internet and is supportive of all genuine campaigns/advocacy for this but that is not an endorsement.”
Image: Instagram
Kamiya Jani also featured in Google’s collaborative ad with the government which read, “Don’t rely on headlines alone, know the full story.” She is the founder of an online travel and food portal Curly Tales, which posts videos on social media about the latest food outlets, travel places. Curly Tales has also featured Rahul Gandhi during his Bharat Jodo Yatra, where the Congress leader was interviewed by Kamiya
Ankush Bahuguna is a famous content creator with 1 million followers on Instagram. He gained fame for his videos around make-up and funny skits. “Check if it is true or views of a few,” read Ankush’s portion in the ad, which tried to point out the need to verify authenticity of viral videos online
Famous chef Saransh Goila was also featured in the ad campaign as he advised people to handle online information with caution
Various people are now raising questions about calling these influencers as experts on online content