It was unsettling to see the Twitter accounts of notable figures, government organizations, and multinational corporations without a blue authority checkmark next to their name.
The decision to eliminate the tick marks has reignited misinformation concerns, which, according to some experts, were never adequately addressed.
The symbol had become recognized as a sign of reliability. It distinguished genuine from false, real from a parody, and truth from lies, at least in essence.
Twitter deactivated vintage verified accounts on Thursday.
Everyone was affected by the cleansing. Pope Francis, Donald Trump, Justin Bieber, Imran Khan, and Cristiano Ronaldo lack the distinguishing characteristics of their caricatures. Despite not signing up, a few celebs kept their blue checkmarks on Twitter.
In response to a news article about the tick marks, Musk stated that he was “paying for a few personally.” In response to a subsequent tweet, he stated that it was only for William Shatner, LeBron James, and Stephen King.
Misinformation is an issue
Vice News reported that a fake Twitter Blue account purporting to represent Rapid Support Forces. A paramilitary group battling for control of Sudan, falsely claimed its leader had been killed in the fighting.
The @RSFSudann account, which claims to represent the Rapid Support Forces, is verified, while @RSFdan is not.
The fake tweet claimed RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo died from combat injuries.
This was similar to the outcome in 2022, when Mr. Musk opened account verification to anyone who could pay and several parody accounts appeared, causing a great deal of confusion. When it tweeted that it would provide free insulin to customers, the impostor account of the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly — with a tick mark — made the most headlines. The shares of the company plummeted before the damage could be repaired.
Media companies gone
The removals followed squabbles between Twitter and several news organizations that objected to labels indicating their accounts were “state-affiliated” or “government-funded.” According to an AFP assessment, however, these had also vanished from numerous prominent media accounts.
It was unclear why the labels were eliminated, but the change was lauded by some. “I support Twitter’s removal of all ‘State-affiliated media’ labels,” tweeted Hu Xijin, former editor of the Chinese state tabloid Global Times and prominent nationalist voice.
