Elon Musk’s arbitrary reforms to Twitter’s verification policy took a new turn when public figures who had been stripped of their blue badges returned them Saturday night, including several dead users.
Musk has made a number of changes to the user authentication process since acquiring the platform last October.
On Thursday, the blue checkmarks were removed from “old” users who were vetted prior to the takeover, leaving only subscribers to the $8-a-month Twitter Blue service with the checkmarks, which offer features like priority positioning in replies.
However, this weekend, some high-profile users of the platform reported that their badges were being returned for free, falsely indicating that they were paid subscribers to the Twitter Blue service.
“Checkmate,” Musk tweeted as the changes went into effect – after three days in which Musk’s Twitter Blue superfans were ridiculed by other users and even blocked in plain sight. There were several prominent stamp recipients who appeared to be grateful to them.
British actor Sir Ian McKellen wrote: “Despite the implication, if you click on the blue icon that mysteriously reappeared next to my name, I will not pay for the ‘honor’.”
American writer Stephen King tweeted: “I think Mr. Musk should donate my blue check to charity. I recommend the Prytula Foundation, which provides life-saving services in Ukraine. It’s only $8, so maybe Musk-san will add a little more.
The South African-born billionaire has previously revealed that he has personally paid for the screening of several celebrities, including Mr. King and LeBron James.
This ad hoc approach appears to have been replaced by a more systematic policy of verifying users with at least a million followers.
But the court also confirmed the deaths of several celebrities, including actor Chadwick Boseman, Senator John McCain, broadcaster Anthony Bourdain and basketball player Kobe Bryant, drawing widespread criticism.
“Forcing people who have died to falsely advertise your product is an ethical bridge that most companies don’t cross,” wrote one user. “Though Elon doesn’t seem to have a problem with it.”
The recent changes follow the popular #BlockTheBlue campaign to block Twitter Blue followers.
One of the main accounts promoting the campaign, comedian @Dril, received a confirmation badge from Musk. The @Blocktheblue account promoting the campaign has been removed.
The episode came at the end of a difficult week for Musk, when his biggest-ever SpaceX rocket launch failed, dropping his fortune by $13bn (£10.5bn).
Source: I News
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