Verification on #Twitter was sought after because it conveyed status. Now a blue check is meaningless or even suggests that those paying for it have fallen for a scam.
The Verge explains:
“The basic truth of cool, as anyone can tell you, is that trying to be cool is not cool, and paying to be cool is for suckers.”
"So don't debate, a player straight You know he really doesn't get it anyway Gonna play the field, and keep it real For you, no way, for you, no way So if you don't rate, just overcompensate At least, you'll know you can always go on ricki lake The world needs wannabes So hey hey, do that brand new thing"
Except it wasn’t s status symbol, it was a way that Twitter added value, by validating that the person was who they claimed. Musk thought it was a status symbol, because he thinks everything is a status symbol. I am torn between thinking he is just an idiot obsessed with status or that he deliberately decided to use his wealth to tear down a site that had been used to foment opposition to fascism. Maybe it’s a bit of both.
Twitter is not what it was. I set up accounts here and on Post. Many of the influencers I follow did as well. Unfortunately, it was a symbolic move by most as they continued to live in the Twittersphere. Meanwhile my feed became filled with hyperbolic and frankly dangerous MAGA vitriol. I finally had enough and deactivated my account. I hope the influencers who remain on Twitter will finally make the move ecause I do miss them, but I will never go back.
The core reason for verification was to confirm that you are who you say you are. Other people assumed there was status to it ... and too many verifieds bought into that false narrative, sadly.
For most journalists, it let sources know that, when you approached someone seeking information, you are indeed a bona fide member of the press.
That’s really not accurate. It wasn’t about status, it was about verifying that an account was genuine. When I first started using Twitter, right wingers stalked me constantly and created dozens of impersonation accounts. THAT is what the verification badge was about - preventing abuse and ID theft. I couldn’t have cared less about “status.”
NOW it’s about status, the weakest, most pointless and pathetic kind of status, because anyone can buy it for $8 a month. And it’s now useless for its original purpose, ID verification.
@Green_Footballs Exactly. My Twitter account still exists bc I don’t want others to take over the handle. Last time I checked, it still had a blue check, but I suppose it will take some time to remove them.
Accounts have impersonated me on Twitter & here on Mastodon. So a blue check had value as a reliable way to distinguish my content from those fake accounts. Now it’s meaningless & has no value.
Troll
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •costrike
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Vitor Py
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •You know he really doesn't get it anyway
Gonna play the field, and keep it real
For you, no way, for you, no way
So if you don't rate, just overcompensate
At least, you'll know you can always go on ricki lake
The world needs wannabes
So hey hey, do that brand new thing"
as in the old Offspring song about Elon.
Steve Cromwell
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Now it's like an ugly hood ornament that even if someone bought one for me, I'd bash it off with a baseball bat.
Queen of New York
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Andy Knudsen
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Dwight Silverman
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •For most journalists, it let sources know that, when you approached someone seeking information, you are indeed a bona fide member of the press.
Gene Mikulka
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •KarynDoc
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Chris Trottier
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Why the Blue Check is a terrible feature - HedgeDoc
blog.atomicpoet.orgCharles Johnson
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Charles Johnson
in reply to Charles Johnson • • •Sheril Kirshenbaum
in reply to Charles Johnson • • •Accounts have impersonated me on Twitter & here on Mastodon. So a blue check had value as a reliable way to distinguish my content from those fake accounts. Now it’s meaningless & has no value.
Thomas H Jones II
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Adrian Morales
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •@infosec_jcp 🆓🐦🐈🃏 done differently
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •⚫------>☑️🐦💸 ( #DelistedTWTR )
Ralphieboy
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Jim colahan
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •AT-AT Assault 🏳️⚧️
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •That IS a basic truth, but not anyone could tell you that. If everyone knew it, you wouldn't have people *trying* to be cool.