The Essential Influencers by Terveystalo – An Open Letter To Facebook Inc., Google, Snap Inc. and Twitter

The Essential Influencers: An Open Letter To Facebook Inc., Google, Snap Inc. and Twitter

Open letter from Nordic health company urges social media giants to elevate COVID-19 experts with a special verified badge.
As the COVID-19 still dominates online conversations, social media continues to provide a platform for the infodemic of misinformation. To elevate factual content, Nordic health company Terveystalo is calling on social media giants to launch a special “verified” badge to promote individuals with accurate, unbiased and up-to-date information amidst the ongoing pandemic.

According to research from the Reuters Institute, politicians, celebrities and other influencers are responsible for 20% of COVID-19 related misinformation spreading around social media1. This might seem insignificant but due to social media algorithms content from them gets more visibility and engagement. On Tuesday 26th of May, Nordic health company Terveystalo joined the fight against misinformation with an open letter to social media giants Facebook, Twitter, Google and Snapchat.

The open letter calls for the launch of an icon to recognise and verify scientists, doctors and public health officials who are researching the virus and battling the common enemy with accurate information. The new icon would work in the same vein as verified badges given to celebrities and influencers, providing public health experts with a similarly elevated platform.

“As more and more people turn to social media as their primary source of information, we believe that it is important to ensure that the information found can be trusted. By encouraging platforms to adopt the Essential Influencers icon, we want to do our part in helping the general public find reliable sources among the clutter and unwarranted expression. Even though we are a Nordic company, we believe in acting on a global scale,” says Petri Bono, the Chief Medical Officer at Terveystalo.

The icon’s primary purpose is to help the general public elevate trusted sources such as doctors, scientists and public health officials from the flood of misinformation. Rather than give set criteria for a trusted and essential influencer Terveystalo wants to start a conversation on the subject with the social media channels and suggests seeking advice from for example the top universities and their faculties of medicine.

“As social media platforms have become increasingly popular, it is crucial that these platforms take a more active stand in the fight against misinformation. Covid-19 will not be the last pandemic we will experience, thus striving for a trustworthy system around the public health officials will serve as a long-lasting service to all,” continues Bono.

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