Some automotive influencers are just as bad as Hollywood celebrities…
Not too long ago, three notorious car influencers teamed up with a sheriff’s office in Georgia to create a public service announcement. While the actual campaign hasn’t launched, it looks like the whole thing is to discourage street takeovers, street racing, and other reckless maneuvers on public roads. That’s great and all, but the influencers decided to use some behind-the-scenes footage and photos to create a dumb hoax about how they’d all been arrested while filming for their YouTube channels.
Check out car influencers behind the scenes here.
I’m not naming names here for a reason, but you can probably guess who all was involved in this stunt. They played it off as just harmless fun and I can see that argument. However, combined with how they and other automotive influencers conduct themselves on social media versus real life, I think there’s a more powerful message here.
It’s disingenuous at best when a car YouTuber has a garage that’s worth easily well over a $1 million, sometimes several million, and tries claiming they made their fortune as an influencer. Digging into their pasts, I think you’ll find they were either incredibly lucky in some previous/current business venture or they have rich parents. Yet these lovely individuals have no qualms at all selling the lie to their gullible followers.
Just like the arrest prank, their entire social media life is shrouded in deception. Instead of how social media has helped to expose movie stars, musicians, and other celebrities really aren’t gods amongst men, influencers have become famous because they know how to use social media sites to craft a public image that attracts followers.
It’s no wonder so many who would love to own a Ferrari or a few, maybe a McLaren, some Lamborghinis, an Aston Martin, and so on gravitate to these influencers. They seem like they’re down-to-earth, regular guys, but their personas, their wardrobes, and everything else they show to the masses is carefully crafted. Just like so-called “reality TV” nothing about what they do is genuine or real, or at least very little is.
Thankfully, some fans immediately detected the deception in the arrest hoax. But the influencers involved made it pretty obvious they weren’t being serious. Why don’t these same fans call out their beloved icons for destroying rare, desirable vehicles in the pursuit of gaining more clicks? That’s odd behavior for a supposed gearhead.
I’m not saying you can’t or shouldn’t follow any automotive personalities on social media – after all, I do. It’s just that there seem to be two types: those who manufacture drama and act more like the Kardashians and those who obviously are just sharing their passion with the world. A quick test of which type a certain person on social media might be to question if they mostly talk/post about themselves or about other things? If they themselves are the focus of their social media activities, which is often the case with true “influencers”, then I would argue you’re dealing with a fraud. Consume what you want, but I believe it’s best to know when you’re being actively deceived with a fairy tale life that doesn’t really exist since reality is a better place to live.
Images via Cottonbro, Los Muertos Crew, Cottonbro
