Congress pushes to require social media influencers to disclose some payments

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of lawmakers is pushing to regulate social media influencers, particularly when they are being paid by foreign governments to amplify certain political messaging.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, of Florida, a onetime social media influencer before being elected to Congress, introduced the Foreign Propaganda Disclosure Act on Monday as a way to ensure transparency in the increasingly foggy world of online politics. The bill would require influencers to disclose when they are being paid by foreign governments to push certain political stances.

"There is a big difference between having an organic opinion and secretly acting on behalf of foreign interests to push propaganda to Americans," Luna said in a statement. "Foreign adversaries have been actively using disinformation and psychological operations to divide America, erode our national security, and undermine U.S. foreign policy. Americans deserve to know when the voices shaping what they see online are working on behalf of foreign interests."

The bill would specifically amend the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 to include social media influencers under the definition of "publicity agent." The century-old law requires people who lobby or collaborate with foreign governments to register with the federal government to identify outside influence.

The term influencer would be defined as anyone with a monetized account on a social media platform.

The bill comes amid a rise in social media stars across the country, including in Utah, which has become a hub for influencers and reality stars in recent years. That phenomenon has only grown with the breakout of MomTok, a viral group of Utah-based mothers who gained popularity online and with the reality show "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives."

More than 50 million people across the globe identify themselves as influencers, with roughly 2 million earning $100,000 or more annually, according to a 2025 study from Goldman Sachs.

But some influencers have been duped by foreign governments in recent years, which the government has warned amplifies foreign interests. For example, U.S. prosecutors in 2025 discovered a media company linked to high-profile conservative influencers that was funded by Russian media to "to churn out English-language videos that were 'often consistent' with the Kremlin's 'interest in amplifying U.S. domestic divisions in order to weaken U.S. opposition' to Russian interests, like its war in Ukraine," according to The Associated Press.

The influencers themselves were not charged, but two employees of Russian state media were charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

It's not yet clear how quickly Luna's bill could get a vote in Congress. However, it has already garnered bipartisan support, with at least two Democrats signing on as co-sponsors so far.

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