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Mecklenburg County to pay influencers to promote social distancing

By Joe Bruno, wsoctv.com
By Joe Bruno, wsoctv.com

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — For weeks, everyone has heard government leaders talk about the importance of social distancing, but for some, the message still isn’t clicking.

Channel 9′s Joe Bruno learned Mecklenburg County is now considering maybe it’s who is delivering the message and is taking the campaign to social media.

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Most of the coronavirus cases are people 20 to 59 years old. The county is trying to reach this age group in different ways.

When people think of influencers, supermodel Kylie Jenner or prankster Logan Paul may come to mind.

While Mecklenburg County isn’t trying to keep up with the Kardashians, leaders are in the process of paying influencers to promote social distancing and COVID-19 messages.

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The goal is to reach younger people who are still out and about and not listening.

“Because our numbers are so high in that area, we’ve got to look at how we message to this community,” said Gibbie Harris, Public Health Director.

The county said a firm is connecting them to influencers. There will be 30 total composed of college students, radio hosts and local celebrities. No names have been named yet.

Social Media Influencers (WSOC)

The group is expected to create 300 posts that start rolling out this week.

“The fact they’re legitimately going through with this is such a waste of my tax dollars," one person tweeted in response to the idea.

Commissioner Susan Rodriquez Dowell said she disagrees with the criticism. She hopes the messages will reach people who aren’t watching or reading the news regularly.

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“I think it is really smart,” she said. “Trying to reach people is not as easy as one might think.”

County officials have not said yet how much off of it will cost. They are launching radio ads on gospel, urban and Spanish stations.

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