Accounts sharing misinformation receive higher engagement per follower than high credibility accounts on major social platforms.

Is it true that accounts sharing misinformation receive higher engagement per follower than high credibility accounts on major social platforms?

Partly. Two multi-platform studies report greater relative engagement with low-credibility or unreliable content on most platforms, while two health-content analyses find engagement metrics only weakly related to information quality. None measures engagement per follower, so the claim is only partially addressed.

Verdict: CONTESTED PARTIAL · 3 sources for, 2 against · Last checked 3 Oct 2026

The private library was unavailable for some searches in this check. Missing library results are not evidence against the claim.

Misinformation in the Gaza war. (n.d.). en.wikipedia.org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misinformation_in_the_Gaza_war

R, H., J, J., P, Y., Y, Y., Y, X., A, P., J, Y., & X, C. (2026). Quality and Reliability of Social Media Videos on Weight-Loss Interventions for Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Multi-Platform Cross-Sectional Study.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.2147/nss.s599776

Corsi, G. (2023). Evaluating Twitter’s algorithmic amplification of low-credibility content: an observational study. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1140/epjds/s13688-024-00456-3

S, S., M, F., W, Q., & M, C. (2025). Relative engagement with sources of climate misinformation is growing across social media platforms.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-03082-9

X, W., Z, S., Z, Z., L, Z., D, Z., & M, C. (2026). Short-form video platforms as a source of ankylosing spondylitis information: a cross-sectional content analysis.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.3389/fdgth.2026.1757584