The Role of Media Watermarks in Shaping Credibility Judgments: A Qualitative Study of Premier League Transfer Rumors among Chinese Gen Z Football Fans

Peng Ye

doi:10.54254/2753-7064/2025.LC25549

Communications in Humanities ResearchOpen access

The Role of Media Watermarks in Shaping Credibility Judgments: A Qualitative Study of Premier League Transfer Rumors among Chinese Gen Z Football Fans

Research Article

Open Access

The Role of Media Watermarks in Shaping Credibility Judgments: A Qualitative Study of Premier League Transfer Rumors among Chinese Gen Z Football Fans

Peng Ye ^1*

¹ University of Toronto

^*Corresponding author: stevenpeng.ye@mail.utoronto.ca

Published on 30 July 2025

CHR Vol.74

ISSN (Print): 2753-7072

ISSN (Online): 2753-7064

ISBN (Print): 978-1-80590-301-7

ISBN (Online): 978-1-80590-302-4

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Abstract

In today’s increasingly visual social media environment, users make rapid judgments about information credibility based on visual cues. Among Chinese Gen Z football fans, Premier League transfer rumors frequently circulate on platforms such as Weibo, Rednote, and WeChat, blending verified and unverified information. This study investigates how digital media watermarks influence the credibility judgments of Chinese Gen Z fans (born 1995–2010) when encountering transfer rumors online. Using qualitative research through semi-structured interviews with 20 frequent users of football-related content, the study analyzes how watermark characteristics (e.g., visibility, origin, platform context) affect trust and skepticism. The findings reveal that while some users still associate watermarks with copyright or authenticity, many no longer see them as reliable credibility signals due to widespread watermark manipulation and platform-specific misunderstandings. Notably, trust increasingly shifts toward first-hand foreign platforms (e.g., Twitter, Instagram), while Chinese platforms face greater skepticism. This research contributes to the understanding of digital visual literacy, challenges conventional assumptions about watermark credibility, and offers insights into sports media consumption and misinformation in cross-cultural online environments.

Keywords:

media watermarks, credibility judgment, Gen Z, Premier League rumors, social media platforms.

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References

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References

[1]. Metzger, M.J. and Flanagin, A.J. (2013) Credibility and trust of information in online environments: The use of cognitive heuristics. Journal of Pragmatics 59, 210–220.

[2]. Sullivan, J., Zuser, T. and Bi, W. (2025) Discursive expression of football fandom in China: language, creativity and digital community. Soccer and Society 26, 533–545.

[5]. Guo, L. (2020) China’s "Fake News" Problem: Exploring the Spread of Online Rumors in the Government-Controlled News Media. Digital Journalism 8, 992–1010.

[7]. Robin, F., Ménétrier, E. and Beffara Bret, B. (2022) Effects of visual imagery on false memories in DRM and misinformation paradigms. Memory 30, 725-732.

[8]. Lin, X., Spence, P.R. and Lachlan, K.A. (2016) Social media and credibility indicators: The effect of influence cues. Computers in Human Behavior 63, 264–271.

[9]. Gaziano, C. and McGrath, K. (1986) Measuring the Concept of Credibility. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly 63, 451.

[10]. Tolmie, P., Procter, R., Randall, D.W., Rouncefield, M., Burger, C. et al. (2017) Supporting the use of user generated content in journalistic practice. arXiv preprint arXiv: 1702.06491.

Cite this article

Ye,P. (2025). The Role of Media Watermarks in Shaping Credibility Judgments: A Qualitative Study of Premier League Transfer Rumors among Chinese Gen Z Football Fans. Communications in Humanities Research,74,67-73.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

About volume

Volume title: Proceedings of ICADSS 2025 Symposium: Art, Identity, and Society: Interdisciplinary Dialogues

ISBN: 978-1-80590-301-7(Print) / 978-1-80590-302-4(Online)

Editor: Ioannis Panagiotou, Yanhua Qin

Conference website: https://www.icadss.org/Lincoln.html

Conference date: 22 August 2025

Series: Communications in Humanities Research

Volume number: Vol.74

ISSN: 2753-7064(Print) / 2753-7072(Online)

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