California may fine content creators who don’t disclose they were paid to post about politics
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Weeks before voting ended in California’s primary for governor , Los Angeles-based influencer Shaka Smith took to Instagram to tell his more than 700,000 followers…
California, along with Texas, is considering implementing a policy that would require content creators to disclose if they have been paid by political campaigns to post about politics. Shaka Smith, a Los Angeles-based vegan influencer with over 700,000 Instagram followers, recently took to the platform to announce his support for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer and specified that he was paid by Steyer’s campaign.
In 2022, then-Senate candidate John Fetterman's campaign paid Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi of "Jersey Shore" to make a video about his opponent, while in 2023, creators were paid by an influencer marketing agency to defend Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Despite some creators disclosing they were paid, California's campaign finance watchdog is investigating cases where creators allegedly did not disclose their paid partnerships.
While there are no federal disclosure rules, Senator Adam Schiff has introduced federal legislation, although it has not yet received a vote.
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