What do Pope Francis, the Republican National Committee and Beyoncé have in common? They are all on Twitter. All lost the blue check mark this Thursday for not paying a subscription created by Elon Musk after he took the reins of the social network.
Twitter gave notice on Wednesday that it would begin removing blue tics from those accounts that obtained it under the previous administration - under a system Musk criticized as "deeply corrupt" and elitist - and did not meet the new monetary requirement. This is not the first time that the company has issued an ultimatum in this regard; the elimination was initially announced for April 1. Nothing happened then.
Tomorrow, April 20, we will remove the legacy checkmarks. To remain verified on Twitter, individuals can sign up for Twitter Blue.
Tomorrow, 4/20, we are removing legacy verified checkmarks. To remain verified on Twitter, individuals can sign up for Twitter Blue here: https://t.co/gzpCcwOXAX
Organizations can sign up for Verified Organizations here: https://t.co/YtPVNYypHU
— Twitter Verified (@verified) April 19, 2023
Twitter Blue costs $8 per month or $84 per year. Those who choose to pay will be able to get the blue check mark on their profiles after an identity check. In addition, the subscription includes other benefits such as uploading longer videos, editing tweets once they are posted and seeing fewer ads.
The traditional blue tick is no longer the only one. There is a whole constellation of emblems to distinguish between different types of accounts: the golden tick indicates that the account belongs to a company, the gray one points to official organizations or officials, the Netflix logo indicates that the profile belongs to the video-on-demand company. And Elon Musk's blue tick, which he keeps for being a Twitter "affiliate."
This is in addition to labels that distinguish automated profiles -also called bots-, professional accounts and those associated with States. The latter was at the center of several controversies during the week due to complaints from media outlets such as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Elon Musk's exceptions
Some other celebrities escaped Elon Musk's purge. Lebron James for example. The basketball player said through the social network that he would not pay to have the subscription. And yet, the social network has not removed its blue check. According to information from The Verge, the Twitter team granted Lebron James a free subscription on behalf of Elon Musk. Stephen King or William Shatner would also enjoy this treatment. According to the portal, these are subscriptions that Elon Musk personally pays for some celebrities chosen by the CEO.
You’re welcome namaste 🙏
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2023
