Elon Musk leaves on the Turkish Home after assembly with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan … [+]
X, the social media platform previously referred to as Twitter, introduced a brand new function this week that lets so-called verified customers routinely block any replies from folks with out blue checkmarks. And Musk has already began utilizing the function, deploying it, mockingly sufficient, in a brand new publish about Group Notes, the crowdsourced fact-checking program.
“Thanks for preventing for fact,” Musk wrote on Tuesday, quoting a tweet about reforms made to Group Notes in an effort to hurry up fact-checking.
X has come beneath fireplace this week for being flooded with misinformation in regards to the warfare in Israel and Gaza, with numerous tweets pushing out previous or incorrectly recognized images and movies. Even online game footage has been handed off as actual and seen by hundreds of thousands of individuals.
Screenshot of Elon Musk’s Tuesday tweet that solely lets so-called “verified” accounts reply.
However the issue of misinformation on X didn’t begin this week. Musk has made quite a lot of adjustments to X since he purchased the platform in October 2022, a lot of them controversial. Twitter had beforehand verified the id of notable customers, together with celebrities and journalists. However Musk removed legacy blue checkmarks, permitting anybody with $8 to purchase verification, although X doesn’t confirm the id of anybody.
Musk additionally launched a program to pay folks with blue checkmarks for his or her engagement, one thing that has contributed to significantly vile movies being shared in an effort to rack up views. I can personally attest to the truth that I’ve seen extra folks killed on video up to now two months than I’ve ever seen in my 15 years on the location.
With Musk’s determination to restrict replies to solely these individuals who pay him cash, it appears clear the billionaire is making an attempt to create a type of protected house for himself. Musk has expressed frustration that he receives criticism on the platform. And whereas Musk has recommended he’d wish to abolish free accounts on the platform, it stays to be seen whether or not he’ll comply with by on that concept.
Social media is difficult. You’re preventing huge forces and dangerous actors who hope to unfold misinformation. And whereas Musk insists he’s doing his finest to restrict the unfold of lies on X, it’s clearly getting worse with the one-two punch of paid verification and paying creators for engagement. And with the location hemorrhaging advertisers ever since Musk took the helm, it appears unlikely that sufficient folks pays $8 monthly for the privilege of seeing extra snuff movies.
X didn’t instantly reply to questions on Musk’s use of the brand new function that limits replies to paying prospects. I’ll replace this publish if I hear again.
