Twitter's blue check used to be a free sign of authenticity and popularity. But now anyone can sign up for a blue check for $8 a month.
Photo: AFP
Accounts that refused to pay were de-registered last Thursday, as billionaire boss Elon Musk rolled out a service, dubbed “Twitter Blue,” to generate new revenue for the company.
According to Travis Brown, a Berlin-based software developer who tracks social media platforms, only a tiny fraction of users with blue ticks agreed to pay, less than 5% of the 407,000 accounts affected.
But recently, a number of celebrities have regained their blue ticks without paying, including writer Stephen King, NBA champion LeBron James and former US President Donald Trump.
The accounts of some deceased celebrities, such as American chef Anthony Bourdain, also received a blue tick.
Several official media accounts have also regained their blue ticks, including the New York Times and AFP, which had not signed up for the Twitter Blue service.
However, Twitter's move has failed to deter other major media outlets like the US's NPR and Canada's CBC, which have recently stopped operating on Twitter.
Trung Kien (according to Reuters)
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