TechDigits

Tech news
Saturday, Feb 22, 2025

Love Island contestants called out over social media ads

Love Island contestants called out over social media ads

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has named six influencers it says are "consistently failing to disclose advertising" on Instagram.

It said the six, who include Love Islanders Jess and Eve Gale and Belle Hassan, have all previously been warned about breaking advertising rules.

It is part of its policy of listing repeat rule-breakers on its website.

The watchdog is now taking out ads alerting consumers to the rule breaches.

Ads are also being taken out against Jodie Marsh, Anna Vakili and Francesca Allen.

The ASA is running the campaign for two weeks and could take further action against influencers who continue to break the rules by referring them to other watchdogs that can offer fines.

UK advertising rules state that paid posts must be clearly marked with #ad or Instagram's paid partnership feature.

Shahriar Coupal heads up advertising policy at the ASA and says "it's important social media followers are told" about what influencers are doing.

"In a new front of enforcement activity, we're using targeted ads to highlight the breaches of six social media personalities to the very same audience they are seeking to influence," she adds.

'It's your income'
Shaughna Phillips says she is "always transparent" with followers


Shaughna Phillips was on Love Island in 2020 and says finding the right tone with advertising online is often difficult, but that she is "always transparent" with her followers.

"They're your consumers, you don't want to mislead them in any way," she tells Radio 1 Newsbeat.

"I have to agree with what I'm promoting and it has to be in the interest of my followers, but I also don't want an ad to perform badly for a brand, I want it to get the best coverage and engagement possible," she says.

Shaughna says that it's easy for Instagram to become filled with adverts and paid promotions from influencers, but people forget that they're also an important source of income.

"Even though it might look like you're doing a lot of ads, that could potentially be your rent for that month, so you might sometimes not have a choice," she says.

"It can saturate your brand though - if you've done one that people haven't bought into and haven't enjoyed, they might just not look at anything you post after that."

She also says influencers need good management to ensure they put across the right image online.


The government is currently looking into the effect influencers have on social media and met on Tuesday to discuss whether more needs to be done to regulate paid ads and promotions.

The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee met with leaders from Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok to look at what could change.

Newsletter

Related Articles

TechDigits
0:00
0:00
Close
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The future of sports
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
UK Crypto and Stablecoin Regulations Become Law as Royal Assent is Granted
A Delaware city wants to let businesses vote in its elections
Alef Aeronautics Achieves Historic Milestone with Flight Certification for World's First Flying Car
Google Blocked Access to Canadian News in Response to New Legislation
French Politicians Advocate for Pan-European Regulation on Social Media Influencers
Melinda French Gates Advocates for Increased Female Representation in AI to Prevent Bias
Snapchat+ gains 4 million paying subscribers in its first year
Apple Makes History as the First Public Company Valued at $3 Trillion
Elon Musk Implements Twitter Limits to Tackle Data Scraping, but Faces Criticism for Technical Misunderstanding
EU and UK's Slow Electric Vehicle Adoption Raises Questions About the Transition to Green Mobility
Top Companies Express Concerns Over Europe's Proposed AI Law, Citing Competitiveness and Investment Risks
Meta Unveils Insights on AI Usage in Facebook and Instagram, Amid Growing Calls for Transparency
Crypto Scams Against Seniors Soar by 78% in 2022, Experts Urge Vigilance
The End of an Era: National Geographic Dismisses Last of Its Staff Writers
Shield Your Wallet: The Perils of Wireless Credit Card Theft
Harvard Scientist Who Studies Honesty Accused Of Data Fraud, Put On Leave
Putting an End to the Subscription Snare: The Battle Against Unwitting Commitments
The Legal Perils of AI: Lawyer Faces Sanctions for Relying on Fictional Cases Generated by Chatbot
ChatGPT’s "Grandma Exploit": Ingenious Hack Exposes Loophole in AI, Generates Free Software Codes
The Disney Downturn: A Near Billion-Dollar Box Office Blow for the House of Mouse
A Digital Showdown: Canada Challenges Tech Giants with The Online News Act, Meta Strikes Back
Distress in the Depths: Submersible and Passengers Missing in Titanic Wreckage Expedition
Mark Zuckerberg stealing another idea: Twitter
European Union's AI Regulations Risk Self-Sabotage, Cautions smart and brave Venture Capitalist Joe Lonsdale
Nvidia GPUs are so hard to get that rich venture capitalists are buying them for the startups they invest in
Chinese car exports surge
Reddit Blackout: Thousands of Communities Protest "Ludicrous" Pricing Changes
Nvidia Joins Tech Giants as First Chipmaker to Reach $1 Trillion Valuation
AI ‘extinction’ should be same priority as nuclear war – experts
×