Elon Musk's plan to 'purge' blue check marks has hit a snag, with one major publication finding its account stripped of the coveted symbol. Instead of going after legacy accounts as previously promised, Twitter appears to have singled out The New York Times for removal.
The move came on Saturday, when users woke up to find their verified status had been stripped. However, it soon became clear that only one account - The New York Times' main page - was affected. Other accounts associated with the paper remained verified.
This has raised questions about Musk's true intentions behind the purge. Initially, he promised to "begin winding down" blue checks granted under Twitter's old verification system, which aimed to protect high-profile users from impersonation. However, it seems that this plan may not have gone as smoothly as expected.
In order to stay verified, users were required to pay $8 per month for the platform's Twitter Blue subscription service. But most legacy blue check holders found their verification marks had been appended with a new label instead of disappearing altogether.
The move has sparked confusion among users and experts alike. The new label makes it unclear whether verified accounts are notable individuals or simply users who have paid to join Twitter Blue. This could potentially make it easier for scammers to impersonate high-profile users.
For his part, Musk claims that changes to the verification system will treat everyone equally. However, critics argue that this is a thinly veiled attempt to drive revenue and further his own interests. With the platform already plagued by issues related to inauthentic behavior, this move may have unintended consequences.
As the situation continues to unfold, one thing is clear: Elon Musk's plans for Twitter's verification system are proving to be more complex than initially anticipated.
The move came on Saturday, when users woke up to find their verified status had been stripped. However, it soon became clear that only one account - The New York Times' main page - was affected. Other accounts associated with the paper remained verified.
This has raised questions about Musk's true intentions behind the purge. Initially, he promised to "begin winding down" blue checks granted under Twitter's old verification system, which aimed to protect high-profile users from impersonation. However, it seems that this plan may not have gone as smoothly as expected.
In order to stay verified, users were required to pay $8 per month for the platform's Twitter Blue subscription service. But most legacy blue check holders found their verification marks had been appended with a new label instead of disappearing altogether.
The move has sparked confusion among users and experts alike. The new label makes it unclear whether verified accounts are notable individuals or simply users who have paid to join Twitter Blue. This could potentially make it easier for scammers to impersonate high-profile users.
For his part, Musk claims that changes to the verification system will treat everyone equally. However, critics argue that this is a thinly veiled attempt to drive revenue and further his own interests. With the platform already plagued by issues related to inauthentic behavior, this move may have unintended consequences.
As the situation continues to unfold, one thing is clear: Elon Musk's plans for Twitter's verification system are proving to be more complex than initially anticipated.
... i feel like elon musk is putting a lot of pressure on people who just wanna stay connected with others online 
... it seems like he's more worried about getting that $$$ from twitter blue subscriptions 
instead of really making the platform safer and more trustworthy 
... what if scammers can just impersonate verified users now?! 
that would be a total bummer 
... anyone else feeling anxious about this whole thing? 
. I mean, you'd think it would be legacy accounts first, right? But it seems like they just targeted them instead 
. I'm not sure what Elon Musk is trying to achieve here, but it feels like he's more interested in making that Twitter Blue subscription service pay off 
. What do you guys think? Should Twitter be doing this, or are they just messing up 
?
. And now, most legacy accounts have these new labels that make it hard to tell who's legit and who's just paying for the fancy status 
. And Musk's trying to say it's all about equality, but I'm not buying it 
. This just feels like another way for him to rake in the cash and manipulate the platform for his own gain 
.
.
and now everyone's all confused cuz it's not clear if verified accounts are legit users or just paying customers like me... i swear this is gonna be a disaster 
- so maybe this whole 'purge' thing was just an excuse for Musk to test the waters and see how users react 
.
In 2023, only 29% of tweets received fewer than 1 like 
. And let's not forget: Twitter Blue has been generating $150 million in revenue per quarter since its launch in 2022 
! I mean, come on, Elon Musk, you can't just go around 'purging' blue check marks willy-nilly without thinking about the consequences. It's like, what's next? Stripping all the verified accounts from news outlets and leaving them to fight for their online credibility 
This whole situation is a hot mess, and I'm not sure what's going on anymore... 
. Either way, this whole thing is a mess and I don't think anyone's coming out on top in the end 
. Like, I get it, Musk wants to shake things up and make money from verified accounts, but this is getting messy 
. He wants more control over the platform and who gets to keep their blue check mark. And honestly, it could lead to some major impersonation issues 
... So Elon Musk wants to 'purge' blue check marks, but it looks like he's only targeting one account - The New York Times main page?