Some Celebrities Complain About The New Cost Of Twitter's Blue Check Mark And Refuse To Pay

When Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022, the $44 billion purchase wasn't met with positivity by everyone. While some people were thrilled at the idea of Elon taking over the platform and supposedly restoring free speech, others were disgusted by the fact that he would have a hand in such a big social media site. Various celebrities expressed disappointment that Elon reinstated accounts like former President Donald Trump, but he pressed on regardless and even exposed much of the corruption that took place before he took over. Twitter allegedly "has interfered in elections" in the past, but Elon promised to bring a more trustworthy platform to users. One of the changes he made was to establish a new blue check mark policy. The blue check mark would no longer be granted to public figures or celebrities. It was only available to users who paid $8/mo to verify their identity; this new blue check mark would also come with new features, such as getting better visibility, being able to edit your tweets, and having access to additional characters in tweets. Not everyone was happy with this change, though.

Celebrities Complain about the New Cost of Twitter Blue Check Mark and Refuse to Pay

On April 20, the blue check mark policy was put into place. Many of the celebrities and public figures had their check marks stripped away because they hadn't paid the monthly fee to retain it. Zendaya, Kim Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen, Adele, The Rock, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, and more A-list celebrities now have profiles without a blue check mark. Some have been very outspoken about this new change.

Singer Ciara tweeted, "Blue check or no check… I know my fans still checkin."

Ciara's reaction was mild, especially compared to the likes of Alyssa Milano, who even changed her bio to reflect her refusal to pay for a blue check mark. "NOT PAYING FOR A BLUE CHECK MARK!" is the very first line of her bio.

"So by revoking my blue check mark because I wouldn’t pay some arbitrary fee, someone can just be me and say a bunch of bullshit. Does that mean Twitter and @elonmusk are liable for defamation or identity theft or fraud?" she tweeted.

Twitter Help added a disclaimer to Alyssa's question: :Impersonation is still, and has been against the site rules since 2018, verified check mark or not."

Singer Charli XCX tweeted, "officially no longer an officially verified artist. i love being unofficial and unverified. it’s very moi."

She added another tweet shortly after that simply said, "unverified is giving c*nt."

Even Sesame Street favorite Elmo chimed in: "Elmo will miss you, little blue check mark. But don’t worry everybody, Elmo is still Elmo!"

All of the celebrities' complaints about the new blue check mark have resulted in numerous users highlighting their entitlement and unnecessary whining. "Most of you have never had the displeasure of knowing 'celebrities.' They are trash, repulsive people. The good news is they are also miserable. There ain’t no free karmic lunch. They are crying over $8. It’s not the money. It’s the ENTITLEMENT. They think they are gods," lawyer and filmmaker Mike Cernovich tweeted.

Elon is doubling down on Twitter's decision to instate a blue check mark that is issued due to verified identity, not fame or status, either ignoring the complaint or responding directly to them with humor.