The National
Broadcasting Council

‘Today we are among a group of highly influential people: influencers, digital creators, as well as people from the media and social media. I should say that this is not merely a polite compliment to open the conference. It is a fact confirmed by data, by reach, and by the real influence you have on millions of people’, stressed Dr Agnieszka Glapiak, the KRRiT Chair.

The KRRiT Chair noted that more than 800,000 creators publishing audiovisual content are active in Poland, and more than 57,000 of them have more than 10,000 followers. This is a scale that shows influencers are now significant participants in the media market – with a real impact on our purchasing, social, political and worldview-related decisions.

‘Influencer marketing has become one of the most effective promotional tools today. The value of this market in Poland is estimated at around PLN 240 million. That's hardly surprising, given that an influencer's recommendation can sometimes be more persuasive than a traditional advert. Why? Because it is based on a relationship, authenticity and trust. And trust is today's most valuable currency’, noted Dr Agnieszka Glapiak.

The impact of influencers is also visible in the aspirations of the youngest generation. For 35% of young people from 11–17 years of age, the profession of influencer is today the most attractive career path. This data shows not only the popularity of this field, but also the scale of social responsibility that comes with it.

‘The future of the industry will not belong solely to those with the greatest reach, but to those who can combine creativity, engagement and passion with responsibility’, added Agnieszka Glapiak.

The conference was divided into two thematic panels. The first panel, ‘Let's Talk – Influencers, Audiences, KRRiT’, moderated by Anna Ostrowska, KRRiT press spokesperson, brought together experts representing the online industry, creators, and organisations working in fact-checking and media education.

Taking part in the discussion were: Anna Garwolińska – Director of Regulatory Affairs and Public Affairs at the IAB Poland Internet Industry Employers' Association; Eng. Konrad Skotnicki, PhD – science communicator, creator of the ‘Doktor z TikToka’ (‘Doctor from TikTok’) profile; Natalia Sisik – creator and co-creator of the #NewsNaDziś series; and Marcel Kiełtyka – board member, Director of Communications and PR at the Demagog Association.

During the panel, Marcel Kiełtyka drew attention to the question of defining exactly what an influencer is.

‘Today we talk about influencers as people who have an enormous influence on shaping public opinion. From our perspective, however, the question that often arises is about the scope of responsibility that should accompany that influence. Should influencers be treated as fully-fledged media, or as citizens exercising freedom of speech’?

In turn, Anna Garwolińska addressed changes in the influencer-marketing market.

‘Being an influencer has stopped being a hobby and has become a profession. Brands are aware of the power creators hold, and want to make use of it. That makes responsibility and knowledge all the more crucial – not only about the legal aspects and rules for labelling content, but also about how the market itself works, along with algorithms and the mechanisms for building reach’.

Eng. Konrad Skotnicki, PhD, noted that we live in an age when you can practically become an influencer overnight and reach millions. However, one must not forget the responsibility that comes with reaching such a large group of users.

‘We live in times when, especially thanks to platforms such as TikTok, you can become an influencer practically overnight and gain millions of followers within a few weeks. Today this is a genuine career path that many young people dream of. When I started out online, I never assumed it would become a way of making a living. Yet now, for part of the younger generation, it's an obvious career plan’.

Influencer Natalia Sisik continued this thread.

‘When creating our #NewsNaDziś series, we thought first and foremost about young audiences. We wanted to build a format resembling a press agency: without commentary, without taking either side, with an emphasis on pure information delivered in language young people could understand. The pandemic was a turning point – amid informational chaos and conflicting messages, we decided it was worth translating dispatches from agencies such as PAP or Reuters into simpler, more accessible language’, she said.

An important topic in the first panel was the fight against disinformation. Marcel Kiełtyka of the Demagog Association addressed this thread.

‘I have no doubt that as reach grows, so does responsibility – especially where content can affect audiences' health, safety or lives, as in the case of medical disinformation. That's why initiatives that bring order to this area are so important, such as KRRiT's guide, debate on standards, and jointly developing rules. It's about genuinely working to improve the quality of information in the digital space, not just discussing it’.

On the subject of countering disinformation, Natalia Sisik highlighted the need to verify sources.

‘Of course, social media rewards emotion and polarisation. What's crucial, though, is properly explaining context and verifying information across several sources. Traditional media have, over the years, developed standards of editorial work and fact-checking. I believe digital creators should draw on that experience and treat it as a reference point for their own work’.

The second panel, moderated by Andrzej Ross, Head of the Internet Content Creators Department, was devoted to regulatory challenges and the phenomenon known as sharenting. Taking part were: Marcin Kruszewski – lawyer, creator of the ‘Prawo Marcina’ (‘Marcin's Law’) profile; Patrick Ney – British online creator, filmmaker and blogger; Katarzyna Paciorek – online creator known as ‘Kasix’; and Patryk Juhre, Director of the KRRiT's Multimedia Department.

Marcin Kruszewski, who runs the popular ‘Prawo Marcina’ profile, drew attention to the nature of the influencer industry.

‘I found myself thinking about the very definition of an influencer. Looking at the top of the industry, at creators with the greatest reach – often bigger than television programmes – it's easy to see it as a dream career path. I've sometimes felt it was more worthwhile to put together my own material online than to appear on a traditional programme, because I could reach more people’, he noted.

Katarzyna Paciorek, ‘Kasix’, spoke about the beginnings of her work as an influencer.

‘I create lifestyle content and livestream. That means I very often spend my evenings with my audience – including young people listening to me through headphones while sitting at their computers. When I started, I just wanted to share what I was playing, what I was watching, and what I wanted to talk about. It was a natural need to talk and be with people’, she said.

‘Streaming, though, has this particular feature: it's hard to pretend to be someone else. Over eight years I've done a great many things online, but the turning point came when a young girl wrote to me saying I was her idol and that she wanted to be like me. I realised that, for some young people, I could be a role model – even if I never saw myself that way. That was the first time I really felt the weight of the responsibility that comes with being an online creator’, she added.

Patrick Ney, a British online creator and filmmaker, when discussing responsibility, focused on his professional experience making historical films.

‘In the past, the main educational role was played by school and parents. Today, influencers also have a growing influence on what our children's generation will look like. For ten years I've been making films about Polish history and culture, from the perspective of a foreigner who now identifies as Polish. I know how little the world knows about Poland. For years we were behind the Iron Curtain, and our heroes and our fight for freedom remain little known outside the country’, he noted.

Marcin Kruszewski addressed the issue of education within the influencer industry:

‘We see spectacular careers, but we don't notice those who didn't make it. It's a bit like Olympic medallists or footballers at top clubs – we admire their success and earnings, but don't think about the thousands who never reached a similar position. That's why reliable education about what creating content online and using new technology tools actually involves is so important. Only then can young people make informed career decisions’.

Continuing this thread, Patrick Ney stressed how important feedback from his followers had been to him as a creator.

‘I remember a film about Witold Pilecki that around 10 million people watched 10 years ago. A young American woman wrote to me afterwards. She admitted she'd previously known little about Poland, but that Pilecki's story became a huge inspiration for her’, he stressed.

‘In that one message I saw the power online content can have when it reaches the right person. There were also times when viewers wrote to tell me that, influenced by my material, they'd decided to return to Poland after many years abroad. That shows online video can genuinely affect life decisions and shape attitudes’.

A large part of the discussion was taken up by questions from conference participants relating to legal regulation, in particular entry in the register maintained by the KRRiT. Influencers asked who is required to register, whether the number of followers matters, what the consequences are of failing to register for the VOD list, and whether digital creators' data is shared with other bodies.

Questions were answered by representatives of the KRRiT's Multimedia Department: Director Patryk Juhre and Andrzej Ross, Head of Department, who stressed that any digital creator with doubts can contact the KRRiT by email or phone.

‘Today's event responds to influencers' needs. We want to help them understand all the complexities around the legal requirements. Our aim, above all, is to show how to register a service correctly, so as to avoid costly mistakes’, stressed Patryk Juhre.

Responding to the discussion, the KRRiT Chair, Dr Agnieszka Glapiak, stressed that, as a regulator, the KRRiT's priority is to work with influencers, clarify any doubts, and support them in understanding the legal regulations arising from EU legislation.

Summing up the conference, the KRRiT Chair announced educational initiatives aimed at the industry, which will allow information about influencers' obligations to reach a wide audience.

‘Because the influencer market matters enormously to us, we've planned a campaign involving well-known digital creators. Together with them, in their language and through their channels, we want to talk about responsibility, transparency and standards of online communication. Because the best regulation is the kind that goes hand in hand with industry awareness. You'll hear more about our plans in this area very soon’, noted Dr Agnieszka Glapiak.

Even before the conference, the KRRiT Chair sent a letter to institutions that professionally support the work of digital creators, reminding them of the obligations arising from the Broadcasting Act.

In the letter, Dr Agnieszka Glapiak stressed that, under the applicable regulations, some creators operating on-demand audiovisual media services are required to register in the list maintained by the KRRiT Chair. This obligation is part of the statutory legal order and serves to ensure transparency in the media market.

‘The KRRiT's experience shows that not all market participants – whether creators or the entities supporting them – are aware of the responsibility that comes with operating in the electronic-media environment. In this context, your role – not only as business partners, but above all as advisers to digital creators – is of key importance’.

During the conference, KRRiT's comprehensive Guide for Influencers was presented. The publication explains, in accessible terms, influencers' legal obligations, including the rules for labelling commercial content, protecting minors, and operating as a VOD provider.