The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has provided more clarity on when influencers and digital creators need to authorise their political content on social media amid plenty of talks lately around the topic.
The AEC has published updated guidelines for influencers, podcasters, and content creators, so everyone knows the rules about what counts as “electoral communication” and when authorisation is required, as the 2025 federal election looms.
In a statement on Monday, it explained content shared by content creators not directly affiliated with political entities (like candidates or registered political parties) typically doesn’t require authorisation.
But there’s a couple of situation in which this changes — that’s if the content involves any paid advertising or if they were paid to produce or distribute the material.
The guidelines also tackle collaborative posts, given parties and politicians sometimes share content from influencers that wasn’t originally made by them. In this case, if they collaborate and the content automatically appears on the political entity’s page (like in a sponsored or joint post), it’s up to the party or politician to add the authorisation.
And even if they share or repost content, they must add an authorisation statement on the post, as it is considered a new communication.
The AEC said it is working directly with political parties to make sure they understand the more technical details of the authorisation rules.
Last week, the AEC reviewed whether content shared by influencer and Its A Lot podcast host Abbie Chatfield needed political authorisation, after Instagram posts of her interviews with Greens leader Adam Bandt and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
The probe found Chatfield did not breach any laws, explaining there was no evidence of any monetary benefit for Chatfield or that Albanese or Bandt had creative control in relation to the questions asked.
But the saga raised important questions of how to navigate the new minefield of political content on social media platforms.
“Authorisation requirements can be complex, particularly for newer functions of social media platforms,” the AEC said in its statement.
“The AEC’s advice is always ‘if in doubt, authorise’ – particularly for political and disclosure entities who does or might meet one of the key criteria under the legislation for requiring an authorisation statement.”
Generally, the level of compliance with authorisation requirements has generally been good, it said, and in almost all cases, any breaches have been quickly rectified when requested.
But the new guidelines are bound to impact politicians across the board, many of whom may have co-authored posts with influencers.
As reported by ABC News, recent examples include Opposition leader Peter Dutton collabing with diver and podcaster Sam Fricker in a post post budget reply, and Albanese co-posting a video last week with Ozzy Man Reviews.
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