A new UNESCO-backed research report has highlighted the growing influence of digital content creators in South Africa while revealing significant gaps in training, ethical guidance, digital safety and professional support.
The report, titled “Behind the Screens in South Africa: Challenges, Opportunities, and Needs of Digital Content Creators,” examines how creators produce and share information, the challenges they face online and the support required to help them operate safely and responsibly. The study was conducted by the Centre for Analytics and Behaviour Change (CABC) with support from UNESCO’s Social Media 4 Peace project, funded by the European Union. Researchers surveyed 48 content creators across South Africa and conducted in-depth interviews with 11 others.
The findings show that creators are becoming increasingly important in shaping public conversations. While 43.8 per cent of those surveyed identified mainstream news media as a primary source of information, many creators are also conducting their own research, consulting experts and relying on personal experiences when producing content.
However, UNESCO identified a major gap between the growing influence of creators and the training and institutional support available to them.
Only 10.4 per cent of respondents had received Media and Information Literacy training, while half reported having no journalism background. In addition, 64.6 per cent had little or no awareness of international freedom-of-expression standards, while 59 per cent were unaware of regulations specifically relating to digital content creation.
The research also raised concerns about misinformation. About 36 per cent of creators do not consistently verify information before sharing it, while 34 per cent consider likes and views an important indicator of credibility. Artificial intelligence is another emerging issue. Creators are increasingly using generative AI for tasks such as generating ideas, writing captions and conducting research. However, only 33 per cent consistently disclose their use of AI to their audiences, raising questions about transparency and trust.
Online safety was identified as another major challenge. UNESCO found that 75 per cent of respondents had experienced or witnessed technology-facilitated gender-based violence, while 72 per cent had experienced or witnessed xenophobia online.
Despite these challenges, the report identified significant opportunities for strengthening South Africa’s creator economy. Many creators expressed a willingness to improve their professional and ethical standards.
About 87 per cent said they wanted training on ethics and freedom of expression, while 87.5 per cent saw value in ethical guidelines for content creation.
The report recommends practical workshops, peer-learning networks, AI and platform literacy programmes, better access to legal information and stronger mechanisms for addressing online abuse. UNESCO also called for greater creator participation in discussions around platform governance and content moderation.
The research ultimately highlights an important reality: as digital creators gain greater influence over how people receive and understand information, stronger support systems will be needed to help them create content that is credible, ethical, safe and responsible.