SOCIAL media influencers can significantly increase the spread and toxicity of misinformation online, according to new research led by academics at Cardiff Business School.

The study, published in the journal Psychology & Marketing, analysed brand-related misinformation and associated user comments across forty-seven brands in nine industries over a three-year period. Researchers say it is the first study to measure how online toxicity differs when misinformation comes from influencers rather than ordinary users.

Brands increasingly rely on social media influencers to reach audiences, with spending on influencer marketing hitting a record $33bn in 2025. While influencers can drive engagement and sales, the communities built around them can also amplify inaccurate claims and direct hostility towards brands.

The research found that regular social media users who spread misinformation are often challenged or criticised by other users. As a result, discussions tend to become more civil over time as inaccuracies are corrected.

Influencers, however, face the opposite incentive. Their visibility, engagement and profits often increase when posts generate controversy or strong emotional reactions.

The analysis found that online toxicity was particularly high when influencers discussed socio-political issues, where public emotions and stakes are greater.

Lead author Dr Giandomenico Di Domenico said: “Social media influencers often have huge followings that are extremely valuable for brands seeking to increase sales.

“But our research shows the negative consequences when influencers endorse or amplify misinformation. Under the same conditions that increase their visibility and influence, influencers also generate significantly more toxic engagement than regular users.”

He explained that the close relationships influencers cultivate with their followers play a key role.

“Unlike regular users, influencers form parasocial bonds with their communities. These relationships make followers far more likely to support or defend claims without critically questioning them.

“This means misinformation introduced within these networks does not simply attract attention — it can transform scattered reactions into collective, belief-driven antagonism.”

The researchers identified two key mechanisms that strengthen misinformation when it comes from influencers.

The first is “legitimation”, where the influencer’s endorsement lends credibility to a claim. The second is “community enmeshment”, where followers rally around the influencer and reinforce the narrative.

When combined, these factors can create what researchers describe as “toxic echo chambers”, producing a self-reinforcing cycle in which toxicity increases engagement — and engagement encourages further inflammatory content.

The study highlights how these dynamics played out in early 2025 when several TikTok influencers posted viral videos claiming luxury brands including Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Chanel secretly manufactured products in Chinese factories while marketing them as “Made in France” or “Made in Italy”.

The videos presented the claims as exposés of industry deception but offered no verifiable evidence. Despite this, they generated millions of views and fuelled widespread online debate about authenticity, ethics and transparency in the luxury industry.

Dr Di Domenico said the example illustrates a growing tension within influencer culture.

“Despite the positive impact influencers can have on marketing outcomes, their prominence also introduces new risks,” he said.

“When misleading or controversial claims are amplified by influencers, the resulting backlash can create highly toxic environments that damage brands and distort public understanding.”

The research paper, titled Don’t You Know That You’re Toxic? How Influencer-Driven Misinformation Fuels Online Toxicity, is published in Psychology & Marketing.

A NEW study has highlighted the crucial role that Wales’s coastal habitats play in protecting communities from flooding, estimating they provide flood-risk benefits worth around £36 million each year.

The research, carried out by Natural Resources Wales in partnership with marine consultants ABPmer and economic specialists eftec, examined how natural coastal features such as sand dunes, shingle banks and saltmarsh help reduce the impact of storms and rising sea levels.

The Wales-wide study assessed the physical characteristics of different habitats and how effectively they absorb wave energy, reduce wave height and limit tidal flooding.

Researchers estimate the natural protection these habitats provide is worth about £36m annually, based on the cost of damage avoided to homes, farmland and infrastructure including roads and railways.

Key coastal areas identified

Several locations were highlighted where coastal habitats could deliver particularly significant flood-risk benefits. These include Port Talbot, Newport, Neath, Swansea, Carmarthen Bay and stretches of the north Wales coastline.

However, the report warns that these natural defences can only provide their full protective benefit if they remain in good condition.

The latest State of Natural Resources Report has found many coastal margin habitats in Wales are already in poor condition, having been damaged by habitat loss, fragmentation and the growing pressures of climate change and sea level rise.

Researchers estimate that around 30 per cent of Wales’s original sand dune area has disappeared since 1900. Meanwhile, up to a quarter of saltmarsh within Welsh marine protected areas could vanish by 2155 if current trends continue.

‘Working with nature’ approach

Nicola Rimington, Lead Advisor on Marine and Coastal Physical Processes at Natural Resources Wales said communities across Wales already rely heavily on engineered coastal defences.

But she warned that flood risks are expected to increase significantly in the decades ahead due to climate change.

She said: “Many communities benefit from hard-engineered coastal defences, but face the very real prospect of flood risk increasing significantly in the decades ahead.

“As we face the growing challenges of climate change, we need to broaden our approach – working with nature to build greater long-term resilience.

“This report highlights the essential role our coastal habitats play in protecting communities and reinforces why restoring and safeguarding them must be a priority.”

Kathryn Robbins, Principal Environmental Consultant at ABPmer, said the research offered a first national-scale assessment of the protection provided by Wales’s natural coastlines.

She added: “Coastal habitats in Wales have experienced declines in extent and condition over the last few decades.

“This national-scale study provides an initial insight into the significant level of protection and economic benefit these habitats provide towards protecting communities from coastal flooding.”

The findings follow recent assessments of Wales’s network of Marine Protected Areas, which highlighted the need for urgent action to protect habitats, biodiversity and water quality.

The full report is available on the Natural Resources Wales website.

THE FUW has raised serious concerns over proposals to change the rules governing lamb castration and tail docking, warning that the measures could have unintended consequences for both animal welfare and sheep farming businesses.

Responding to the UK Government’s consultation on lamb welfare, the union said that while farmers recognise the importance of maintaining high welfare standards, the proposals as currently drafted are impractical and fail to reflect the realities of sheep farming across Wales and the wider UK.

The FUW stressed that although castration and tail docking do cause pain, they remain important management tools used to prevent serious welfare problems throughout an animal’s life. These procedures reduce the risk of fly strike, prevent unintended pregnancies in ewe lambs and minimise injuries caused by aggressive behaviour in ram lambs.

One of the union’s main concerns is a proposal requiring the use of pain relief medicines that are not currently authorised for use in young lambs. The FUW argues that the suggestion is premature because the range of approved medicines remains limited. At present, such treatments are only available through the veterinary cascade, meaning they have not been specifically tested or licensed for use in sheep.

The union also warned that the proposals could place significant pressure on veterinary services during the busy lambing season, potentially creating delays in treatment and increasing administrative burdens for both farmers and vets.

According to the FUW, the changes could introduce new risks, including accidental overdosing due to extremely small dose volumes, a higher chance of infection at injection sites and additional stress on lambs caused by repeated handling.

Concerns were also raised over plans to extend the upper age limit for routine castration and tail docking from seven days to three months. Farmers believe carrying out the procedures on older, larger lambs could increase welfare problems and infection risks.

While members broadly supported delaying procedures long enough for lambs to receive colostrum and bond with their mothers, the union said a strict 24-hour rule would not be practical across all farming systems.

The FUW also warned that introducing the proposals without equivalent standards for imported lamb could place UK sheep producers at a competitive disadvantage. Additional veterinary involvement, medicine costs and increased labour could significantly raise production costs for domestic farmers.

The union said the measures would particularly affect extensive upland farms, which play an important role in sustaining rural communities, maintaining landscapes and supporting the Welsh language.

FUW Animal Health and Dairy Committee chair Gerwyn Williams said: “Farmers care deeply about the welfare of their livestock and these procedures are never carried out lightly. However, the proposals outlined in this consultation do not reflect the practical realities of sheep farming and risk creating greater welfare problems than those they aim to solve.

“While we support efforts to reduce pain wherever possible, the lack of authorised medicines for young lambs and the reliance on off-label treatments raises serious safety and practical concerns. There is a real risk these proposals could increase stress on animals, worsen health and welfare issues and place further pressure on already stretched veterinary services.”

FUW President Ian Rickman added that any future policy must be developed in close partnership with farmers, vets and industry experts.

“It is essential that any new legislation genuinely improves animal welfare without creating unintended consequences for farmers or the animals in their care,” he said.

The union is calling for further research and deeper engagement with the farming sector before any legislative changes are introduced, arguing that future welfare policies must be practical, workable and effective across the wide range of sheep farming systems operating across the UK.