Remember the days when the Twitter verification checkmark was something to be cherished? You’d harnessed enough followers or had enough expertise for Twitter to bestow that blue icon upon your account.
That was before it became little more than sign of allegiance and serfdom to Elon Musk’s X, following the entrepreneur’s so-far disastrous takeover of the social network formerly known as Twitter.
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Elon may now have realised that his grand plan to make money from Twitter users might be faltering because folks don’t want to sign up for XBlue (née Twitter Blue) because it’s primarily associated with the site owner and the site owner alone.
Sure, you can get good perks like edited tweets, fewer ads, better rankings in search, 280 character posts, text formatting and the opportunity to bookmark posts into folders.
But users have to contend with the outside world knowing they handed over money for that blue tick rather than earning it. While that might be a perk for the Musks and Muskettes out there, it certainly isn’t for everyone. So, he’s letting you hide the blue tick and anonymously enjoy those perks.
“As a subscriber, you can choose to hide your checkmark on your account. The checkmark will be hidden on your profile and posts,” reads a post on the X help centre for paid subscribers.
“The checkmark may still appear in some places and some features could still reveal you have an active subscription. Some features may not be available while your checkmark is hidden. We will continue to evolve this feature to make it better for you.”
So there you have it. Want to experience the benefits of the paid subscription without the social awkwardness? Your wish is Elon’s command.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
