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Chronicles

The story behind the story

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LeBron James, William Shatner, Seinfeld actor Jason Alexander, and some other celebrities with millions of followers say they won't pay for Twitter Blue

April 1 is the dumbest day on the internet, and this year, it's not just because brands will try to prank you by selling “hot iced coffee.”

TechCrunch Amanda Silberling

Discussion

  • @mmasnick@mastodon.social Mike Masnick on mastodon
    This is how you make a statement.
  • @kingjames LeBron James on x
    Welp guess my blue ✔️ will be gone soon cause if you know me I ain't paying the 5. 🤷🏾‍♂️
  • @williamshatner William Shatner on x
    Hey @elonmusk what's this about blue checks going away unless we pay Twitter? I've been here for 15 years giving my ⏰ & witty thoughts all for bupkis. Now you're telling me that I have to pay for something you gave me for free? What is this-the Colombia Records & Tape Club?🙄
  • @monicalewinsky Monica Lewinsky on x
    well this is going to be fun... https://twitter.com/...
  • @ijasonalexander Jason Alexander on x
    Friends, there are bigger issues in the 🌎than the blue verified ✔️next to my name on this account. But without it, anyone can allege to be me. So, if I lose that ✔️ know I will leave this platform. Anyone appearing with it=an imposter. I tell you this while I'm still official.
  • @dionnewarwick Dionne Warwick on x
    I am not paying for a blue check. That money could (and will) be going towards my extra hot lattes. 😒
  • @patrickmahomes Patrick Mahomes II on x
    Can't bro i got kids... https://twitter.com/...
  • @cantguardmike Michael Thomas on x
    Don't nobody want that raggedy blue check no way anymore 😂
  • @bigplay24slay Darius Slay on x
    They can have my blue check 😂😂 fans might tag the wrong name now when someone catch a ball on me!!😂
  • @flglmn @flglmn on x
    incredible to have handled this so badly that celebrities, or their teams, are going out of their way to post about how they won't buy your product, on your product, in order to make themselves look cool to the other users of your product https://twitter.com/...
  • @taylorrooks Taylor Rooks on x
    Players always say Lebron doesn't even pay for data roaming and will wait forever to get to a place with wifi because he refuses to do that extra cost....so this definitely tracks 😂 https://twitter.com/...
  • @scottnover Scott Nover on x
    I like that every major decision that Musk makes involves a different celebrity boss level. First Stephen King and now William Shatner. https://twitter.com/...
  • @rob_sheridan Rob Sheridan on x
    Say what you will about Elon, but it is truly impressive to be so uncool to your very core that despite every potential resource on the planet at your disposal you still make a service so spectacularly lame that guys who make 50 mil a year will make a point not to give you $8 htt…
  • @benjysarlin Benjy Sarlin on x
    Much more importantly, the $8 version won't actually tell you if that Kardashian is the real one. She'd have to register the family business for $1k/month and each member for $50/month to get some kind of distinctive marker. https://twitter.com/...
  • @danprimack Dan Primack on x
    This is avoidable, but Elon/Twitter just don't want to do the work. And it will backfire in entirely predictable ways, including on Twitter's value. https://twitter.com/...
  • @mikeisaac Rat King on x
    i imagine more celebrities are going to be asking this when historical verified goes away — especially when all it will cost is eight bucks and a photo from google images to like impersonate Beyoncé for an hour hope Elon didn't fire his celebrity management division... https://tw…
  • @mikeisaac Rat King on x
    already happening imo it is a fundamental misunderstanding of the value proposition— famous (and “famous") people provide more value to twitter just by being there because that is why people like you and me come to the service to read them not worth charging a kardashian 8 bux! h…
  • Vox Shirin Ghaffary on x
    Elon Musk wants to fill your Twitter feed with paid accounts
  • @sarafischer Sara Fischer on x
    Scoop: @WhiteHouse won't pay for @Twitter verification — It will not enroll in Twitter's “Verification for Organization” program either — It also won't reimburse staff who chose to pay for Twitter Blue either Story on @axios: https://www.axios.com/...
  • @nathanchubbard Nathan Hubbard on x
    1) As someone who was (briefly) in charge of the Twitter Media team - the group tasked with getting high profile people onto Twitter, and verification - AND as one of the few ever to voluntarily give up the blue check, I want to try to articulate how risky this policy change is. …
  • @lawrencehurley Lawrence Hurley on x
    Again, the old twitter verification system always mattered more to twitter than it did to any individual user, and we are about to find out why https://twitter.com/...
  • @itsborys Christian Borys on x
    Elon didn't understand that verification was like a badge telling people that whatever you were doing in life was noteworthy, so it was kind of cool. Now that people can pay for that notoriety instead of earning it, it becomes EXTREMELY uncool. It smells of being a try hard. http…
  • @radiofreetom Tom Nichols on x
    All going swell https://twitter.com/...
  • @toluogunlesi Tolu Ogunlesi on x
    Wawu. If @elonmusk capitulates and exempts the White House, he will have to extend the exemption to @NGRPresident and @NigeriaGov, no? https://twitter.com/...
  • @shawnhils Shawn Hils on x
    me when this website is collapsing https://twitter.com/...
  • @sherman4949 Alex Sherman on x
    Pretty sure we've reached the point where X organization WILL pay for Twitter blue checks is the story, rather than the other way around.
  • @fordm Matt Ford on x
    I don't really care whether I'm verified, but if *no one* is verified—truly verified, not just paying for a cosmetic blue check—then this website's utility and everyday value drops a lot. https://twitter.com/...
  • @broderick Ryan Broderick on x
    There have been all kinds of moments since Musk bought Twitter that you could point to as the exact moment it was officially “over,” but I actually think this is it. The US gov having a meaningful presence here was what elevated Twitter over, say, Reddit. Site's cooked. https://t…
  • @edzitron Ed Zitron on x
    The business conductor continues his symphony https://twitter.com/...
  • @sarafischer Sara Fischer on x
    Verification matters most for people who are responsible for public safety — gov officials, emergency responders, etc. It's notable that officials at the highest level of gov say verification not worth paying for b/c it doesn't signal authority anymore. https://twitter.com/...
  • @johnstanly Stanly Johny on x
    White House won't pay for Twitter verification. I am loving this :) https://www.axios.com/...
  • @lanceulanoff Lance Ulanoff on x
    White House-level Twitter shade: “It is our understanding that Twitter Blue does not provide person-level verification as a service. Thus, a blue check mark will now simply serve as a verification that the account is a paid user,” https://www.axios.com/...
  • @pkafka Peter Kafka on x
    I won't believe it until @JoeBiden writes a self-pitying post here complaining about the loss of his blue check. https://twitter.com/...