X offers blue checks to people with more than 2,500 unique followers

Last night, several prominent journalists and others to publish (He complained in many cases) about unexpectedly getting verified blue checks back on Elon Musk’s X platform. One of them, Peter Kafka, shared a message from X explaining that the promotion was no fluke.

“As an influential member of the X community, we have offered you a free subscription to X Premium subject to the X Premium Terms by selecting this notice,” the message read.

A later tweet from Free.

Before this, the only users who got free premium blue checks were those with large numbers of followers (in the 1 million range, minimum), along with celebrities and corporations/media companies. The new move appears to be a way to bring influential users with low follower numbers (largely journalists) into the fold.

So what prompted this? Maybe X decided it needed more blue check journalists. In the wake of recent events (Taiwan earthquake, Turkish election, Baltimore bridge collapse), some users have complained that X is no longer the gold-standard breaking news platform that Twitter once was.

This is likely because journalists, who discover or amplify such news, have seen a decline in importance as X algorithms amplify blue check content and replies. This means that know-nothing promoters or crypto promoters with 25 followers who paid $8 will appear above the responses, instead of as experienced journalists who can provide useful and honest information.

Since the blue tick has now become a mark of shame in many cases, a fair number of users who get one back are not necessarily happy about it. “Damn, I’ve been forcibly screened. How do I unsubscribe,” @emptywheel wrote. “Oh no,” Katie Notopoulos tweeted. “I’ve become Plushick, the Shibaquin promoter.”