Why Media Monitoring is Crucial in the Age of Deepfakes and Misinformation?

As the world arrives at the midpoint of the era of misinformation and media manipulation, businesses are affected in a very particular way. Even the smallest brands in the UK risk damage to their image from fake content.

Media Manipulation Tactics

1. Deepfakes

A deepfake is a type of doctored media in which a person (or multiple people) in an image, video, or audio is swapped with another person’s likeness.

Some deepfake media has been spread for fun and laughs like the viral videos of Fake Leonardo DiCaprio, and most people know it’s fake. As more advanced AI enters the fold, however, these types of videos are becoming easier to make, and harder to discern.

The spread of a deepfake audio just days before an important vote during the 2023/2024 elections in Slovakia contributed to deeper conversations about the potential use cases and consequences of this type of media.

The quality of the fabricated audio was believable, and it’s unclear if it had any impact on the election results. For businesses, the misuse of deepfakes can range from identity fraud to complete sabotage of media credibility. Both can lead to financial loss or reputational damage.

2. Misinformation

Misinformation is false or inaccurate information shared without intent to deceive. Disinformation, same word, different prefix, is false information designed deliberately to mislead.

The American Psychological Association notes that both forms undermine public trust and create confusion around important issues. For businesses, misinformation could be used to spread false claims about products or services.

3. Data Breaches

Unlike misinformation or deepfakes, data breaches are usually a direct attack with immediately evident consequences. Stolen or leaked data can significantly impact brands, organisations, and individuals.

Hackers, knowing how sensitive personal data is, often leverage their access to a company’s systems to demand ransom. They may also purposefully embarrass organisations, or do both.

What is Media Monitoring?

Media monitoring systematically tracks media channels, both traditional and digital. It keeps tabs on mentions of a brand, individual, or topic.

Media can be broken down into three main pillars:

• Active scanning of media networks such as news, social media, blogs, and forums
• Refined tracking of keyword and brand names
• Sentiment analysis to check for negative or misleading content

Identifying risks to a brand’s reputation early on is important, which is why media monitoring is important.

Believable deepfakes and other types of misinformation spread rapidly, especially among audiences that spend most of their time online. Identifying and combating these types of incidents is extremely important before they snowball.

How to Set Up Effective Media Monitoring?

If you want to protect your brand in today’s misinformation environment, the first step is to set up effective media monitoring strategies. Consider the following implementation plan for maximum effectiveness.

1. Choose a Media Monitoring Platform

Look for tools that can monitor outlets and influencers in your niche, not just high-volume sources. Monitoring should be refreshed quickly so you and your team can track sentiment shifts and viral trends within hours. That way, you can respond to incidents as they happen, not days later.

2. Define Keywords, Brand Names, and Relevant Industry Terms

Filter out irrelevant categories (for example, if you’re a skincare brand, you don’t need auto news updates). Track high-impact publications and niche corners your specific audience will likely hang out on. Set measurable KPIs (i.e., increase positive mentions by 15%, reduce negative sentiment by 10%).

3. Assign Roles for Reviewing and Escalating Flagged Items

Delegate someone on the team to act on real-time alerts during product launches or events. Set different alert criteria for different team members. For example, your PR lead deals with crisis mentions, while your product manager is on campaign coverage.

4. Integrate with Existing Crisis Communication Protocols

Schedule regular reporting intervals (weekly for campaigns and monthly for brand health) so stakeholders can access consistent metrics.

5. Use a VPN

To ensure careful access to sensitive data, invest in a reliable online VPN service. It will secure your connection and encrypt sensitive information while you work, protecting you from potential cyber threats. Whether you’re browsing, working remotely, or accessing private networks, a VPN provides the essential layer of security you need.

6. Don’t Skip Ongoing Maintenance

Update keywords and monitor sources regularly. Revisit KPIs at least quarterly to ensure your current efforts continue to support overall business goals. Make sure they also align with the global media climate.

Be proactive about how you use monitoring data to shape future narratives, not just for response or crisis handling.

Looking Forward

The cost of reputational damage to UK businesses can be substantial. It can range from lost customers to decreased investor confidence. Smart companies are already treating media monitoring as essential business infrastructure, not just a marketing nice-to-have.

With regulatory scrutiny increasing and consumer trust harder to rebuild than ever, proactive monitoring isn’t optional anymore. The tools of the trade will also need to evolve to keep up with the rapid advance of deepfake technology.

They must also keep pace with how quickly videos and conversations spread across social media channels. To remain effective, media monitoring tools will also need to incorporate the latest AI developments to identify risks more quickly and accurately.