Twitter’s Blue Checks Mysteriously Return — Even for the Dead
Confusion surrounding Twitter Inc. deepened over the weekend after a number of high-profile accounts saw their prized blue check-marks reinstated — even though some of their owners have been dead for years.
Celebrities and public figures took to the platform to deny having paid the $8 a month that yields the colored tick, despite labels stating the “account is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number.” Unpaid, legacy blue ticks — which once conferred authenticity on accounts verified by the company — were removed last week as part of billionaire owner Elon Musk’s push to boost revenue.
“For the curious, I’m not subscribed to Twitter Blue. I haven’t given anyone my phone number,” fantasy author Neil Gaiman wrote. British actor Ian McKellen said he isn’t “paying for the ‘honor.’” Even the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, which also received the blue mark, sought to clarify that it has “never subscribed and paid” for the service.
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