TikTok influencers caught willing to hide sponsored political content
An offer too good to pass on?
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- NewsGuard tested 60 US political influencers with a fake offer to post undisclosed paid campaign content.
- Twenty-one influencers showed interest despite being told not to disclose payment to viewers.
- Five influencers refused the offer, and all were right-leaning creators.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Sixty influencers were asked to run a paid political message without marking it as a promotion.
A consulting firm, R&H Strategies, contacted 60 online political influencers, asking them to post a minute-long TikTok video expressing support for a congressional candidate.
In exchange, they would receive up to $2,000. The offer came with one condition: the influencer couldn’t tell their viewers they were paid for it.
Of the 60 influencers, 21 expressed interest and were not deterred by the condition. Five influencers refused the offer, while two asked about nondisclosure conditions.
TikTok creators then learned that there’s no consulting agency, as it was part of the test set up by NewsGuard, which rates news and information websites.
Its findings revealed that when it comes to disclosing paid political content, the industry lacks regulations.
Contacted by a consultancy firm that doesn’t exist
Disguised as a consultancy Firm, NewsGard sent emails to 60 online political influencers in the US.
The influencers were divided based on their political orientation (left or right) and audience size.
The first influencer group of 10 people had fewer than 50,000 followers, the second group had 50,000 to 150,000 followers, and the third group had more than 150,000 followers.
The email noted that influencers would need to promote a political campaign that aligns with their views. For a one-minute TikTok video, an influencer would receive between $750 and $2,000.
However, the offer came with a condition:
“For purposes of the campaign, we are looking for content that feels organic and consistent with your usual voice and style. As such, we ask that you not disclose that the video is paid content,” revealed NewsGuard.
What was revealed?
After influencers expressed interest, the R&H consultant would let them know the deal was not real.
NewsGuard found that left-leaning creators (40%) were more interested in the offer than right-leaning creators (30%).
The five influencers who refused the proposition were right-leaning content creators.
It was also revealed that the influencers most likely to accept the deal were those with an average-sized audience, ranging from 50,000 to 150,000 followers.
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Can you promote paid campaigns on TikTok?
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) doesn’t require influencers to mark their political content as sponsored, but it does require them to disclose paid commercial content.
While candidates are required to reveal their spending, influencers aren’t required to disclose whether they received money from the campaign.
When it comes to TikTok, the platform does regulate such practices, stating that it doesn’t allow paid political advertising.
One of TikTok's policies from October 5th, 2026, states that “Paid political ads are prohibited on TikTok in the United States,” adding that accounts of politicians or political parties can’t use TikTok’s monetization features.
