Elon Musk's Twitter Purge Backfires: Why One Account Landed on the Cutting Room Floor
In a bizarre twist, Twitter's much-hyped purge of legacy blue check marks has resulted in only one high-profile account losing its coveted verification badge. Instead of a systematic overhaul, the platform appears to have targeted a single account from a major publication that Musk dislikes.
The New York Times' main account was unexpectedly stripped of its blue check mark over the weekend, despite having expressed its intent not to pay for verification. The decision comes as Twitter has been touting its new subscription-based model, where users must pay $8 per month to join the platform's Twitter Blue service and maintain their verified status.
However, it appears that Musk has selectively applied his purge, leaving many legacy blue check holders intact – albeit with a new label appended to their verification mark. The updated language makes it unclear whether verified accounts are notable individuals or simply users who have paid to join Twitter Blue.
Musk's decision seems to be more of an odd whim than a calculated policy change. His long-standing campaign against "legacy" blue checks has been met with resistance from prominent users, including actor William Shatner and anti-bullying activist Monica Lewinksy. Experts warn that the new label could make it easier for people to scam or impersonate high-profile users.
By muddying the reason accounts are verified, Twitter's verification system may ultimately drive more revenue – a goal that Musk has stated is crucial in helping him pay off significant debt after acquiring the platform for $44 billion. The move also sets a precedent for how the platform will handle verification moving forward, leaving many wondering what other changes are in store.
As Twitter continues to evolve under Musk's leadership, one thing is clear: the platform's users are left scratching their heads over the latest confusing and contradictory update.
In a bizarre twist, Twitter's much-hyped purge of legacy blue check marks has resulted in only one high-profile account losing its coveted verification badge. Instead of a systematic overhaul, the platform appears to have targeted a single account from a major publication that Musk dislikes.
The New York Times' main account was unexpectedly stripped of its blue check mark over the weekend, despite having expressed its intent not to pay for verification. The decision comes as Twitter has been touting its new subscription-based model, where users must pay $8 per month to join the platform's Twitter Blue service and maintain their verified status.
However, it appears that Musk has selectively applied his purge, leaving many legacy blue check holders intact – albeit with a new label appended to their verification mark. The updated language makes it unclear whether verified accounts are notable individuals or simply users who have paid to join Twitter Blue.
Musk's decision seems to be more of an odd whim than a calculated policy change. His long-standing campaign against "legacy" blue checks has been met with resistance from prominent users, including actor William Shatner and anti-bullying activist Monica Lewinksy. Experts warn that the new label could make it easier for people to scam or impersonate high-profile users.
By muddying the reason accounts are verified, Twitter's verification system may ultimately drive more revenue – a goal that Musk has stated is crucial in helping him pay off significant debt after acquiring the platform for $44 billion. The move also sets a precedent for how the platform will handle verification moving forward, leaving many wondering what other changes are in store.
As Twitter continues to evolve under Musk's leadership, one thing is clear: the platform's users are left scratching their heads over the latest confusing and contradictory update.
I'm tellin' ya, it's like they're tryin' to mess with our heads on purpose! Back in my day, we didn't need all these fancy labels and whatnot just to figure out who's a real deal account or not. It's like Musk is tryin' to confuse the users even more than he already has with that whole Twitter Blue thing... 
I mean, if you gotta pay for it to be verified, shouldn't you at least get the whole shebang? Not just some fancy label that says "Hey, we're gonna let you in on the club, but only 'cause you're willin' to shell out a few bucks" 
, got one account wrong & now it's all about the benjamins 
i'm so confused about this whole blue check thing now! i mean, i get that some accounts might not want to pay for verification, but it doesn't make sense that just one account got dropped like that 
. and what's up with the new label? is anyone really supposed to be able to scam or impersonate famous people now? 
.
so this is wild - i mean, i get that twitter was trying to shake things up but this whole thing just feels like a big mess 
. this whole thing feels like a huge experiment with no clear end goal 
. I'm just confused about where this is all going, tbh 
.
. Ah well, I guess that's progress, right? 
...it's not exactly the best timing either, considering all the controversy surrounding his acquisition of twitter 
...can't wait to see what other surprises he has in store for us 
how can you just pick on some random major publication like The New York Times and take away their blue check mark without any explanation? it's like Musk is trying to play god with Twitter's verification system 
maybe just give everyone a label or something so we all know what's going on? 
like what even is going on with Elon's tweet purge?! 
