News/Commentary

Elon Musk levels ‘blue check’ playing field, officially begins $8 Twitter subscription: ‘Power to the People!’

November 6, 2022 | | Print Article

It’s official.

Thanks to an update to Apple iOS devices, for the low, low fee of just $7.99 a month, you too can soon flaunt a big blue checkmark next to your Twitter handle, “just like the celebrities, companies, and politicians you already follow.”

 

The update, launched just days before the midterm elections, is available in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K., according to the Associated Press.

While not all of the features are currently live, Twitter Blue subscribers will soon enjoy half the ads, priority ranking for “quality content,” and the ability to post longer videos.

It’s all part of Elon Musk’s plan to overhaul not only Twitter’s verification system, but the entire experience found on the social media platform, and, needless to say, there are a lot of butthurt blue checks already screaming about it.

“We need to pay the bills somehow!” Musk shot back to King. “Twitter cannot rely entirely on advertisers. How about $8?”

The price reduction did little to assuage his critics.

No worries, says the quirky billionaire.

“Trash me all day,” he tweeted, “but it’ll cost $8.”

Still, to handle the flood of tears, Musk changed his Twitter profile from “Chief Twit” to “Twitter Complaint Hotline Operator.”

Meanwhile, according to Twitter employee Esther Crawford, “The new Blue isn’t live yet — the sprint to our launch continues but some folks may see us making updates because we are testing and pushing changes in real-time.”

Critics of the new Twitter Blue fear that letting just anyone receive a coveted checkmark will open the door to imposters.

“What if someone impersonate [sic] the previously ‘verified profiles’ with a new profile having a ‘paid blue tick’?” asked the verified Rahul Kumar Pandey.

“Great question,” Musk tweeted back. “Twitter will suspend the account attempting impersonation and keep the money! So if scammers want to do this a million times, that’s just a whole bunch of free money.”

Since taking over Twitter, Musk made clear that he was not happy with the platform’s current verification system, which currently boasts 423,000 verified accounts.

“Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit,” he tweeted shortly after taking control of the company. “Power to the people!”

“This will also give Twitter a revenue stream to reward content creators,” Musk promised.

As for how people will know the difference between a journalist, a politician, and the guy who mows your lawn, Musk has a plan for that, too.

“There will be a secondary tag below the name for someone who is a public figure, which is already the case for politicians,” he stated.

So, to be clear, if you don’t want to pay to tweet, you don’t have to.

But by adding the $8 option, Musk is attempting to create a new revenue stream, thereby lessening the pressure big-name advertisers can place on the platform to censor people, ideas, and conversations they don’t like.

As American Wire previously reported, Pfizer, General Motors, and the makers of Oreo cookies have already paused their ad buys in protest of Musk’s takeover of Twitter — a move Musk says is “extremely messed up.”

Not everyone is against the idea of paying a little extra to free up speech on Twitter, and the move has made for some excellent memes.

Said one Twitter user, “We are the celebrities now.”

Melissa Fine
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