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The Guardian - UK

Technology

Dan Milmo Global technology editor

Why Elon Musk’s cull of Twitter ‘verified’ blue ticks could prove costly

Elon Musk Twitter Inc. BLUE United States

The Twitter Blue Checkmark next to Elon Musk’s name is seen in this photo illustration — Accounts affected by Thursday’s move had not signed up to the Twitter Blue subscription service. Photograph: NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock

Twitter’s aristocracy is no more. Last year, Elon Musk described the verification process as a “lords & peasants system” and on Thursday he deployed the guillotine. Feudalism has now given way to capitalism: money gets you status.

In a long-threatened cull, famous names including Cristiano Ronaldo, Beyoncé, Kim Kardashian, JK Rowling and Sir Paul McCartney lost the blue ticks that confer verified status on accounts.

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