By Jonathan Baker and Hailey Lipiec, EGC’s Social Media Manager If you are familiar with Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” you remember the ominous Ghost of Christmas Future. This ghost presents Ebeneezer Scrooge grim warnings of what may happen to him unless he changes his miserly ways. A modern day parallel to this is a collection of challenges on the horizon that are connected to digital media. Digital Media Publishers Prepare It’s healthy to have an optimistic outlook. On the other hand, it’s not only wise, but necessary, to be aware of risks or potential challenges in certain situations. Having a “knowledge is power” approach is necessary, as these situations can be addressed and, if possible, avoided. As with Scrooge’s meeting with the Ghost of Christmas Future, digital media publishers must stock of a variety of challenges to be wary of in the new year. What are these challenges? Four-Way Tie A recent e-Marketer article listed concerns among U.S.-based publishers about navigating the digital landscape in the new year. Interestingly, four-out-of-eight of these challenges were common among the same percentage of respondents, at just under 30 percent: Ads placed close near either risky content or false news; contextual targeting; monetization with (or without) social platforms; providing scaled audience extension. Image Credit: e-Marketer How are publishers preparing to face these challenges, in addition to ad fraud and poor viewability levels, among others? The answer is content moderation. Content Moderation, Complemented by AI Among the latest applications of artificial intelligence (AI) is aiding how publishers moderate and monitor content that pose the challenges listed above. (Note the italicizing of the word “aiding.” Publishers must not be lulled into a false sense of security with the application of AI in content moderation. While this technology may help streamline the detection of risky content, its algorithms may miss things that the human eye would not.) Then there are other concerns… Thrive—or Deprive? The e-Marketer piece delved further into the utilization of AI for checking digital content. This past September, a three-way collaboration between Meta, Snap, and TikTok was formed to launch Thrive—a “signal sharing” AI-based program aimed to help identify questionable and potentially harmful content across these three platforms. Where TikTok is concerned, however, the goal toward increased automation in moderating content led to the layoff of many employees in October. The moral, therefore, is that a program like Thrive is a double-edged sword for navigating challenges in digital media. Publisher should therefore weigh the pros and cons of pursuing a similar course. The EGC Group will continue to monitor emerging trends—both good and bad—in the digital landscape. As serious as a lot of this blog has been, go back to the parallel at the beginning. Thanks to the warnings provided by The Ghost of Christmas Future, Scrooge avoided his grim fate. The basic practices of staying attentive, in tune, and monitoring all online activity will help the online presence of businesses and brands avoid a variety of pitfalls. As a New Year’s resolution, consider partnering with The EGC Group. Our team of digital experts provide a range of services ranging from ensuring regulatory compliance to website design, among many others. Contact us to learn more.
