Sharjah24: The power of influencer marketing and its role in promoting brands on social media was conveyed to children during the “Fake vs Real Influencers” session at the 16th edition of the Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF 2025).
Content creator Jenan Mustafa, who is active on Instagram and Tiktok, gave children a deeper understanding of influencers on social media and how to identify those who make fake promotions and advertisements on them for money and fame. Through a powerpoint presentation and an interactive Q&A session, Jenan explained to the 10-12 year olds that “not everything on social media is real”.
A fake influencer cares only about likes and followers, and promotes things without trying them, pointed out Jenan. “They will use filters to appear perfect and might spread false information,” she added. She brought two boys from the audience forward to explain from the context of their schoolbags and how a real influencer will promote the bag only after buying and trying one while a fake one will promote it without buying but caring only for the money from the brand owner. Jenan also advised them not to trust an influencer who hasn’t tried out a product.
The content creator continued: “Ask yourself if the content is real or AI-created. Fake content may be exaggerated, acted or AI ones. Is the influencer sharing honestly or replying to comments and is he or she promoting too many things suddenly?” She stressed the importance of honesty and responsibility in marketing and how influencers should choose content with conscience and clarify when a content is paid promotion. She warned them that some AI videos look real, so one has to be careful and think smart.
Jenan pointed out that 30% of famous influencers have fake followers and buy fake comments or likes for money. This was a revelation for the children, and they pledged to choose wisely. “You are the heroes of the future, so not all who seem famous deserve your attention. By being smart, strong and more aware, you can be the real change on social media,” she concluded.
Taking place until May 4 at Expo Centre Sharjah, the 16th edition of SCRF promises an immersive experience under the theme “Dive into Books”. Organised by the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), this year’s agenda features 133 guests from 70 countries, and 122 Arab and international publishing houses from 22 nations.
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