High Profile Personalities Hit by Twitter’s Vanishing Blue Tick
Twitter Blue Tick which signifies
verified accounts have started vanishing from the pages of high profile personalities around the world.
The mass removal of the blue tick commenced on Thursday and its removal cuts across the pages of personalities around the world ranging from politicians, journalists, religious leaders, and sports to other entertainment celebrities.
According to Elon Musk, owner of the Twitter social app, the essence of the removal is to get rid of what he described as a “lords & peasants system.” Thereby, offering to sell the verified blue sticker to anyone willing to pay $8 monthly, a move he stated last year would “democratize journalism & empower the voice of the people.”
In a follow-up to Musk’s earlier pledge, the Pope, Donald Trump, Justin Bieber, Nigerian celebrity singers, which include; Davido, Burna Boy, and Wizkid badges have been found removed from their pages while some celebrities still have the blue tick, despite not signing up for it.
But reacting to this, Musk claimed he is personally paying for some personalities who still have their badges.
However, the removal of the blue badge has generated responses from media organizations who indicated they were either “state-affiliated” or “government funded.”
Also, politicians and official bodies have been hit by Musk with US Senator Brian Schatz objecting to the possible effect on public confidence in the event of disasters.
“There really ought to be a way for emergency managers to verify that they are real on this website or imposters will cause suffering and death,” he tweeted.
“I am not complaining about my own check mark, I just think during natural disasters it’s essential to know that FEMA is actually FEMA,” he wrote, referring to the Federal Emergency Management Agency that steps in after hurricanes and deadly storms.
Earlier in the month, Musk had tweeted that the “Final date for removing legacy blue checks is April 20.”
On Thursday, April 20; the Twitter boss made real his decision on the blue tick as our correspondent at The Pendulum Media, confirmed that Benjamin Hundeyin, the Lagos State police spokesman’s badge had also been removed.
It, however, seems Hundeyin, is not affected by the change on his Twitter page. He said he would not pay a dime to retrieve it.
“Legacy verification gone. I no dey pay shishi,” he tweeted.
More reactions have continued to flood the micro-blogging space with many condemning Elon Musk’s decision stating that impersonation would be on the rise as anyone could subscribe to Twitter Blue.
The essence of creating the Twitter social app has been murdered; many users claimed.
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