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15 Lifeless Celebrities Elon Musk Has Branded With Twitter’s Controversial Checkmark
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(Photo) File of Anthony Bourdain, November 10, 2013, Atomic Liquors in Las Vegas. (Photo … [+]
WireImage
Twitter CEO Elon Musk has changed his mind on the social media platform’s “blue checkmark” so many times it can be hard to keep track. But the billionaire’s latest move is the most perplexing.
Musk stripped “legacy” checkmarks from notable Twitter accounts on Thursday before he started doling them out like a badge of shame to celebrities who didn’t want them. Stephen King, LeBron James and Jason Alexander were just a few of the people who received a free checkmark after very publicly saying they wouldn’t pay $8 a month to keep a meaningless symbol.
Even Twitter’s legendary comedy account Dril was given a checkmark several times on Saturday, with the pseudonymous comedian constantly changing his name on the platform in an effort to get rid of the checkmark. Dril, however, continued to be branded the blue check and finally accepted this fate.
On Saturday afternoon, something still more bizarre began to occur. The Twitter team started offering free checkmarks to anyone who had a big following of roughly one million or more followers. Only problem? By doing that, Musk has given checkmarks to people who’ve died. And when you click on the blue checkmark on their profiles it not only says they’ve subscribed to Twitter Blue, it says they’ve handed over their phone number.
Who is the owner of those Twitter accounts Musk desecrated with his cringeworthy act? Below I’ve collected a list of notable figures—the estates of which might have a problem with the fact that Musk is using their dormant accounts to imply they endorse his product.
Checkmarks on Twitter used to signify that the user’s identity had been confirmed. This feature was introduced after Tony La Russa, the baseball legend who sued the company in 2009 for an impersonator. But Twitter doesn’t verify anyone’s identity anymore, meaning a checkmark is nothing more than a status symbol. The mark is now a dunce’s cap, or a status symbol, considering what it has become in only a few days.
Musk set up an automatic response that is sent to all journalists, which was used by Twitter to respond to late-Saturday questions.
Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts at the Boston NBA Finals Game 6 in 2008. … [+]
AFP via Getty Images
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant was a basketball star who passed away in a helicopter collision in 2020. blue check mark.
(Photo) File of Anthony Bourdain, November 10, 2013, Atomic Liquors in Las Vegas. (Photo … [+]
WireImage
Anthony Bourdain
A blue checkmark has been given to Anthony Bourdain who passed away in 2018. You can check it out if you want to. visit his accountit reads, “This account is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number.”
PASADENA APPROX. – FEBRUARY 5. Actor Chadwick posing in the NAACP image 47th NAACP. … [+]
MovieMagic
Chadwick Bosseman
Chadwick Boseman from Black Panther was also awarded a blue check mark. Boseman passed away from cancer in 2020.
LONDON UNITED KINGDOM – 13 JULY: Chris Cornell, Soundgarden on Stage on Day One of Hard … [+]
Redferns via Getty Images
Chris Cornell
Chris Cornell has been remembered as the legendary musician who was famous for Soundgarden, Audioslave and other bands. He died in 2017. blue check mark.
Jamal Khashoggi is the General Manager of Alarab TV and he watches a Bahraini Press Conference. … [+]
AFP via Getty Images
Jamal Khashoggi
Jamal Khashoggi was a writer for the Washington Post, was killed and dismembered at the order of Saudi Arabia’s ruler Mohammed bin Salman in 2018. Khashoggi is the blue check.
NEW YORK – JANUARY 06 : Kirstie alley visiting SiriusXM Studios, January 6, 2016. … [+]
Getty Images
Kirstie Alley
Kirstie Ally has been resurrected after her death in 2022 due to cancer. blue check mark. Like all of the other celebrity accounts, Alley’s Twitter feed reads, “This account is verified because they are subscribed to Twitter Blue and verified their phone number.”
TOKYO JULY 07 : Chester Bennington, Linkin Park on the stage of the Tokyo leg Live … [+]
Getty Images
Chester Bennington
Chester Bennington of Linkin Park, who passed away in 2017, has been honored with a new memorial. blue check mark.
NEW YORK – APRIL 10, Barbara Walters, television personality arrives at New Amsterdam Theater … [+]
Getty Images
Barbara Walters
Barbara Walters’s new life has been given to her by the 2022 death of Barbara Walters. blue check mark.
Bob Saget Attends Women’s Guild Cedars Sinai Annual in Beverly Hills, California on November 03 … [+]
Getty Images
Bob Saget
The late comedian Bob Saget has received a homage. blue check mark.
US millionaire John McAfee during his interview with AFP at the Marina … [+]
AFP via Getty Images
John McAfee
John McAfee is a developer of software who has died in suicide. blue check mark.
Michael Jackson, Photo by KMazur/WireImage
WireImage
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson has now been given a memorial. He died in 2009. blue check mark.
Miami, Florida: Portrait of New York Cosmos football team. … [+]
Bettman Archives
pele
Pele is the blue shirt of Pele. The legendary soccer player died in 2022. checkmark now.
BURBANK – CA – AUGUST 03 Norm Macdonald performing at “Comedy Central Roast Of Bob … [+]
getty
Norm Macdonald
Norm Macdonald was a comedian who passed away in 2021. He used Twitter a lot. blue check mark.
OXFORD ENGLAND – APRIL 16, 2014: Terry Pratchett poses in a photo at the “Sunday Times” annual awards ceremony. … [+]
Getty Images
Terry Pratchett
Terry Pratchett’s, the late fantasy writer who died in 2015 was awarded a blue check markPratchett, the only author on this list below 1 million fans. Pratchett’s daughter, who has sparred with Musk online, tweeted that she didn’t paidFor the check mark.
TAMPA FL – JANUARY 28, Republican US Presidential hopeful John McCain (R AZ). … [+]
Getty Images
John McCain
John McCain is a US Arizona Senator who died in 2018The checkmark for has been applied to.
