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Twitter has a secret VIP list that goes against Elon Musk’s idea of ’treating everyone equally’ — and who’s on it will shock you
Elon Musk speaks out about “treating everyone equally” on Twitter, but a new report reveals that the CEO has a list of “about 35 VIP users” getting a boost on the platform.
Documents obtained by Platform game claim that people in politics, sports, Hollywood and also various journalists are getting more visibility.
The report states that when VIP users’ tweets drop, engineers at the social networking platform modify the code so that they are “always visible.”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro, President Joe Biden, Los Angeles Laker LeBron James, and Bloomberg columnist Matt Yglesias are among the “elite” — plus many others.
The move to tweak the algorithm to boost tweets echoes Musk’s demands for Twitter engineers in February to push his tweets after President Joe Biden’s Super Bowl post overshadowed his own.
A report claims that Twitter has a list of about 35 VIP users, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro.
Musk plans to allow only Twitter Blue subscribers access to the verification checkbox by November 2022, which he likened to a “lords and peasants system.”
However, news of an alleged list suggests that Musk may be playing favorites.
Platform reports that YouTuber Mr. Beast Twitter user @dril and Menswear writer Derek Guy are also on the list.
Given the names of the so-called VPs, it seems they’ve gained status because of how many users interact with them – whether they love them or hate them.
Some speculate that the listing is Musk’s plan to increase revenue, as many – including himself – said the CEO was overpaying for Twitter, which has struggled to generate revenue.
And Musk hasn’t been shy about monetizing tweets.
Musk is pulling the plug on unpaid verification checks on April 1.
While it’s unclear if this is an April Fool’s joke from Musk, who doesn’t shy away from a joke, the announcement was made on Twitter Thursday night.
Musk also revealed this week that users who don’t pay for Twitter Blue — which costs $8 a month — will no longer be able to vote in polls starting April 15.
Documents obtained by Platformer claim that people in politics such as President Joe Biden, sports, Hollywood and also various journalists are getting more visibility
The report states that when VIP users’ tweets drop, engineers at the social networking platform modify the code so that they are “always visible”
In a way, this could be seen as a great business move for Musk, but it could also spark anger from users who had praised Musk for trying to level the Twitter playing field.
He said the changes will prevent “AI bot swarms from taking over the site,” though he didn’t explain exactly how.
The CEO – who bought the social media network in October – said paid social media will be “the only social media that matters.”
It was also revealed that Twitter is now worth just $20 billion — $24 billion less than what Musk paid for it six months ago, the richest man in the world told his employees.
The news was shared by Musk in an internal email, but this isn’t the first time Musk, 51, has complained about the value of Twitter.
He tried to fight his famous $44 billion takeover of the company, claiming in court that internal documents showed the social media network wasn’t worth that much