iWorld
Digital content creators and their reliance on fictional facts
MUMBAI: We have known it for a long time. And many have cautioned us about it as well.
Now here’s some data to support the fact that digital content influencers and creators are pretty inventive about the so-called information that they tout as facts.
A Unesco backed Behind the Scenes survey has revealed that 62 per cent of influencers do not carry out rigorous and systematic fact-checking of information prior to sharing it. However, 73 per cent expressed the desire to be trained to do so.
The survey is the first global analysis of digital content creators’ motivations and practices, and of the challenges they face. It involved 500 influencers in 45 countries, with the expertise of a dedicated research team at US-based Bowling Green State University.
The survey found that content creators have difficulty determining the best criteria for assessing the credibility of information they find online. 42 per cent of respondents said they used “the number of ‘likes’ and ‘shares’ a post had received” on social media as the main indicator. 21 per cent were happy to share content with their audiences if it had been shared with them “by friends they trusted,” and 19 per cent said they relied “on the reputation” of the original author or publisher of content.
Here’s more: mainstream news media is only the third most common source (36.9 per cent) for content creators, after their own experience and their own research and interviews.
Clearly, a lot needs to be done to train digital content creators as well as followers who swallow any drivel that’s dished out to them as a fact. Unesco has launched an online course to address this and educate them. More than 9,000 participants from 160 countries already registered to participate.
They will learn how to:
* source information using a diverse range of sources
* assess and verify the quality of information
* be transparent about the sources which inspire their content
* identify, debunk and report misinformation, disinformation and hate speech
* collaborate with journalists and traditional media to amplify fact-based information.
Can some more educational initiatives in India be instituted by educational institutes to educate the digital and social media crowd?
iWorld
JioStar revenue hits Rs 9,784 crore as cricket fuels 22 per cent growth
A surge in digital viewership and sports dominance fuels a blockbuster quarter for the media giant
MUMBAI: JioStar is batting on a flat pitch. The media titan’s fourth-quarter results for the financial year 2026 reveal a business scaling new heights, propelled by an unprecedented appetite for premium sports and digital-first storytelling.
Gross revenue for the quarter soared by 22.15 per cent to Rs 9,784 crore, up from Rs 8,010 crore in the third quarter. Operationally, the momentum was equally strong; revenue from operations climbed 21 per cent to Rs 8,372 crore. These figures underscore the firm’s successful integration following the Reliance and Disney merger, creating a dominant force in the Indian market.
The annual performance has been nothing short of a spectacle. Full-year gross revenue reached a massive Rs 36,248 crore, while annual profit after tax hit Rs 3,210 crore. This rapid expansion reflects JioStar’s ability to capture and monetise the massive growth in India’s media consumption.
Cricket proved to be the ultimate growth engine. The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 and TATA IPL 2026 delivered “record-breaking viewership” across both television and digital screens. The World Cup final alone drew a global peak concurrency of 72.5 million on JioHotstar, cementing its status as the nation’s premier streaming destination. On television, JioStar maintained a commanding 34.2 per cent viewership share, reaching a staggering 810 million viewers nationwide.
The digital numbers were just as impressive. JioHotstar averaged 500 million monthly active users, driven by consistent subscriber growth and innovative AI-led content discovery tools. These advancements are ensuring that JioStar remains at the cutting edge of the global “Race for Attention.”
With a firm grip on the country’s most valuable sporting rights and a rapidly growing digital footprint, JioStar is perfectly positioned for the future. It has built the ultimate content powerhouse—one that is ready to dominate the Indian living room for years to come.
