Consumer watchdog group calls for FTC to investigate Dr. Oz's influencer marketing

The news: Consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen wants the FTC to investigate whether Dr. Mehmet Oz violated the agency’s influencer marketing rules.

• Public Citizen claims Dr. Oz was in violation by not disclosing his financial connections to supplement brands he endorses on social media.

Public Citizen has a history of bringing cases of undisclosed influencer marketing to the FTC. And the agency has acted on several by sending notices to influencers about their improper disclosures on social media.

The latest letter focuses on Oz, who has nearly 5 million combined followers on TikTok and X and was recently nominated by President-elect Trump to serve as CMS administrator.

Digging into the details: Public Citizen claims Oz is paid to endorse products from iHerb, but his social media posts fail to properly communicate his connections to the companies and products he promotes. Oz's TikTok and X profile pages do note that he's global advisor and a stakeholder of iHerb.

Public Citizen alleges that Oz violates the FTC’s guidelines, which require social media influencers to place disclosures about their relationships with brands on endorsement messages—not just on their profile pages.

Public Citizen pointed out an Oz post from last week, which promotes the stress relief benefits of “ashwagandha from a trusted source like iHerb.” Neither the post nor the accompanying text disclosed Oz’s financial connections.

Public Citizen’s letter acknowledges that Oz’s TikTok posts contain some disclosures. However, they may not sufficiently disclose all of Oz’s interests and are likely automated by TikTok’s content disclosure system.

Why it matters: The FTC revised its endorsement guidelines last year with an increased focus on social media influencers.

• The FTC can impose civil penalties of over $50,000 per violation for influencers and advertisers who don't follow the agency’s guidelines.
• The FTC hasn’t commented on Public Citizen’s complaint.

Our take: Influencer marketers in healthcare are likely drawn in by creators with large social media followings and medical backgrounds. But with celebrity status often comes increased scrutiny. These are the types of influencer partnerships that brands and marketers must pay closer attention to amid the FTC’s new enforcement guidelines.

Learn more about how healthcare and pharma brands are leaning into the creator economy in our recent Social Media Influencers report.

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