Eco-activist social media influencers (SMI) on Twitter: does credibility matter?

• Main Authors: Mijar, Maisarah, A.Manaf, Aini Maznina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: IIUM 2021
• Subjects: H Social Sciences (General)
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/95691/1/95691_Eco-activist%20social%20media%20influencers.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/95691/; https://journals.iium.edu.my/irkh/index.php/ijohs/article/view/197/107

There has been continuous environmental disruption going on globally up until today, nevertheless, not many are reported in the traditional media. For some, this might mean the country is harmless from disasters. Unfortunately, no country could be declared as free from environmental issue. Malaysia specifically, has been continuously dealing with the ‘annual’ haze that came from the neighbourhood countries due to the urbanisation and speedy development of industrial sectors. In order to obtain information on such pertinent issue, people have now turn to Twitter for any news or trends that are occurring and substitute the physical newspaper. With the vast number of users on social media, Social Media Influencers (SMI) have also been influencing others by their opinions or expertise including environmental issues. This paper seeks to understand how the eco-activist SMI create awareness on environment on Twitter. Using Social Credibility Theory, a qualitative content analysis of eco activist SMI twitter accounts was conducted. The findings indicate that trustworthiness, expertise and active online presence are salient features of an eco- activist SMI when communicating environmental messages through twitter.