Twitter just implemented a new verification checkmark system, which is being rejected by some of its most notable users, including the White House, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and BuzzFeed.
Previously, the checkmark was used to validate the identification of accounts such as news organizations, politicians, and celebrities. However, the new technology will not be able to distinguish between genuine and fraudulent users as readily as before.
Businesses and organizations must pay a minimum of $1,000 per month to retain their verified status under Twitter’s new model, with gold badges for brands and enterprises and gray badges for governments. Businesses may also use the bundle to authenticate associated accounts for $50 per month per affiliate. According to an internal memo acquired by the New York Times, the charge will be waived for the 500 largest advertising customers and the 10,000 most-followed brands, corporations, and organizations.
Some organizations have already expressed their refusal to pay for the checkmark, including the White House, whose director of digital strategy, Rob Flaherty, stated in a Friday email that Twitter Blue, a separate $8-per-month checkmark system for individuals, does not provide person-level verification. The New York Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander also said the organization would not pay the monthly fee for checkmark status, while BuzzFeed’s editor-in-chief, Karolina Waclawiak, stated that it was not a wise use of resources to pay for individuals to retain a blue checkmark.
Anita Kumar, senior editor of standards and ethics at POLITICO, said that in the future, a checkmark will only indicate that the user is paying for benefits such as longer tweets and fewer ads. Similarly, Insider and the Los Angeles Times also stated that they would not pay for Twitter Blue subscriptions or verification.
A survey of 300 marketing and advertising professionals in November found that 53% were unlikely to pay $8 a month for verification on Twitter. Celebrities such as William Shatner and LeBron James have similarly rejected paying for the checkmark.
The sources for this piece include an article in Axios.
