Memes aside, what Elon Musk has done with Twitter and the blue tick topsy-turvy, may have it coming for a long time. Elon Musk, when he bought Twitter from the previous shareholders, had made it clear right at the beginning that anyone (including everyone) would have to pay for ‘services’ they use on Twitter (verification, long tweets, HD videos upload, premium space in reply sections and others). And today, many Twitter users may have noticed that he has delivered on the promises he made. Musk has removed blue tick badges from many profiles on Twitter. In India, many politicians, movie stars, cricketers, and celebrities who chose not to pay for the blue subscription, have lost their verification badges. And now, as they will pay for the services and the badge, it will show – verified because they subscribed to Twitter Blue.
It is no longer a talk under the table that Twitter used to be a den of leftists, quasi-liberals, and Internet fascists who did not use to listen to the arguments of the other sides. They did what they believed to be the right thing to do. It might seem a good thing to do from the outside. However, recent and early releases of Twitter Files have revealed many things to the masses. The world knows how Twitter dealt with certain political parties, NGOs, pharma companies and Biggies to suppress, fix, and posit specific stories, people, and groups with certain ideologies. And this step by Musk, removing the blue tick from accounts en masse, only proves that he is ready to take the battle heads on! Many liberals and celebrities with left-leaning ideologies have decided not to pay Twitter. And Musk, on the other hand, is all ready to ‘make them pay’ or show the way!
In the Indian political scenario, Twitter blue tick subscription seems to have taken the scene by storm! Yogi Adityanath, Kejriwal, Pushkar Dhami, a small-time politician like Rahul Gandhi, and many other political personalities have lost their blue tick verification badges. In celebrities, many have lost their badges too. However, the most hilarious and rather petty case may have been of Amitabh Bachchan. He paid quickly for the subscription and also announced the same on Twitter – almost pleading for the blue tick badge as if people may not notice him without the badge. Many Twitter users made fun of his urgency.
Whatever the case, this new Twitter arena and the new circus of thoughts has been an interesting watch for many people. It intends to remain so for many months, if not years, now. So, have your Alu ke parathe ready and enjoy the show!
Shubham for ILN opinion platform
