"I Can’t Respond to Everyone": An Empirical Investigation of Social Media Influencers’ Management of Controversies

Social Media Influencers (SMIs) are vital assets to social media platforms, attracting substantial audiences and driving engagement. However, their heightened visibility also subjects them to intense public scrutiny, leaving them particularly vulnerable when engaging in controversial behavior or making contentious statements. In such moments, SMIs must decide how to respond in ways intended to de-escalate controversy. This study examines how SMIs make strategic decisions following controversial events, the challenges they encounter, and how audiences interpret and react to these responses, revealing critical misalignments between the two perspectives. Through interviews with eight SMIs and fourteen viewer members in a Mandarin-speaking East Asian context, we outline key considerations SMIs weigh during controversies, the significant challenges they encounter, the aspects where audiences commonly express dissatisfaction with SMI responses. Our findings pinpoint three critical areas of misalignment: the interpretation of delayed responses, the selection of target audiences, and the awareness of underlying reasons behind SMIs’ emotional self-protection strategies.