From Pope Francis to Beyoncé: Twitter removes blue badges from thousands of accounts

Neither are we at BBC Mondo nor are Twitter founder Jack Dorsey himself.

Musk attempted to present the decision to remove verification as a way to democratize content on the platform.

However, its critics maintain that the measure will amplify misinformation with Bring back fake accounts that impersonate people or organizations as they have in the past.

Experts believe that if this happens, it could scare off more advertisers and undermine the extra revenue Twitter earns from its subscription model.

But Musk says the social network is “on the right track.”

“In general, I think the trend is very goodHe told the BBC last week in an exclusive interview.

Twitter first introduced the verification feature in 2009, after legendary baseball player and coach Tony La Russa sued the social media giant over fake accounts impersonating him.

The blue flag has become a status symbol and a sign of power. But in Musk’s new Twitter, users have to pay to confirm their identity.

fear it The decision to monetize verification is a huge cultural shift and power on the platform.

Prior to verification, Kanye West, Shaquille O’Neal, and Ewan McGregor were some of the first celebrities to report their impersonations on Twitter.

Now that the badges are gone, there are questions about how to tell a legitimate account from a scammer.

With verifications gone, many have taken to Twitter to lament or joke about their “loss,” in the face of situations like actor Jason Sudeikis, who lost his photo. tick Blue, while still holding his own, is Ted Lasso, the fictional character he plays.

But there were also cases that caused confusion.

Within hours of Hillary Clinton’s account losing its blue verification badge, another He posed for her with the same profile picture from the former US Senator and announced that she would run for president again.

Meanwhile, in New York, a new user claimed to be the “real Twitter account” representing the government.

Experts warn that these types of tweets can lead to the spread of misinformation.

despite of From the platform to ensure there is more clarity and context around account verifications Because in addition to Twitter Blue, there are also gold (for companies and companies) and gray (for government organizations) badges.

Anyway, for some, like American rapper Ice-T, the whole verification thing has caused an unnecessary stir.

“The fact that we’re talking about blue ticks is a sad moment in society,” he concluded.

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