3Rs of Sustainable Activism on Social Media: Relatability, Reliability and Redress

Abstract

The achievement of sustainability goals will take a joint effort and content creators could be one of the actors helping with reaching it. Reliable but relatable communication on sustainable lifestyles on social media could reach many consumers and contribute to changing their behaviour patterns. However, the content creators’ activities need to fit within certain parameters for the benefits to outweigh the costs. This article identifies three important parameters that regulation should safeguard: Relatability, reliability, and redress. A key reason why content creators have managed to establish themselves as influencers is that they are relatable. But content creators may not be able to ensure what they tell their followers is reliable. That in turn raises the question of who should be responsible for providing redress in cases of misstatements. Following the critical analysis of the European legal framework, this article considers the need for further adaptations to the current rules or even the adoption of new rules more strictly regulating sustainable activism on social media.