I agree with this.

Take a YouTube Channel like Tom Scott for example he's basically creating and broadcasting highly popular mini-documentaries that are well researched and probably just as good as what you would get on telly. Those type of guys absolutely deserve the money they earn, and have managed to find a way to earn off it without having to go through the old industry gatekeepers.

If you have a dig there is some quality stuff on there and its a lot easier to find something that applies to your Niche interests be it Lego or Steam trains or Travel reviews or whatever stuff that would never get on telly.

Though I would imagine that those lads and Lasses would call themselves "content creators" rather than influencers.

There is an awful lot of grifting shite on there though, my main problem is when they don't declare if its sponsored, or they got the stuff for free, or they expect the stuff for free etc.

And the misinformation stuff bothers me as well, there are standards that have to be adhered to on telly and in my view the same standards should apply to video on social media if you are monetised on it. Not the lad who films the coach arrival at the ground who has 241 followers like, the ones that beat the threshold of getting money.