Elon Musk has started rolling out a $7.99-a-month Twitter Blue subscription service. U.S. President Joe Biden, however, is concerned that the billionaire has bought a social media platform “that spews lies all across the world.” Stating that there are “no editors anymore in America,” Biden stressed: “How do we expect kids to be able to understand what is at stake?”
Twitter Rolls Out $7.99/Month Blue Subscription
Tesla CEO and Twitter boss Elon Musk has begun rolling out the Twitter Blue subscription service. Users on the social media platform began noticing Friday that they could now sign up for the Twitter Blue verification for $7.99 a month.
“Starting today, we’re adding great new features to Twitter Blue,” a notice on Twitter reads. The service is currently available in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K.
The notice lists three features that are “coming soon” for Twitter Blue subscribers. Firstly, the company explained that Blue subscribers will only see “half the ads” and they will be “much better ones.” The social media giant detailed: “Since you’re supporting Twitter in the battle against the bots, we’re going to reward you with half the ads and make them twice as relevant.” In addition, Blue subscribers can “post longer videos” and they will have “Priority ranking for quality content.” Twitter elaborated:
Your content will get priority ranking in replies, mentions and search. This helps lower the visibility of scams, spam, and bots.
A user asked Musk when the Twitter Blue subscription service will be available in India. He replied: “Hopefully, less than a month.”
Musk also revealed Saturday:
Twitter will soon add ability to attach long-form text to tweets, ending absurdity of notepad screenshots … Followed by creator monetization for all forms of content.
Replying to a comment about Youtube giving creators 55% of ad revenue, Musk affirmed, “We can beat that.” In a different tweet, the Tesla CEO addressed the inefficiency of Twitter search, stating: “Fixing search is a high priority.”
President Biden Is Concerned About Twitter Spewing Lies
U.S. President Joe Biden shared his concerns Friday about what Twitter is becoming after Musk took over the social media platform, Reuters reported. Twitter laid off half of its workforce Friday but the company said that cuts were smaller in the team in charge of preventing the spread of misinformation.
Biden was quoted as saying:
Now what are we all worried about: Elon Musk goes out and buys an outfit that sends — that spews lies all across the world … There’s no editors anymore in America. There’s no editors. How do we expect kids to be able to understand what is at stake?
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden had been clear about the need to reduce hate speech and misinformation. “That belief extends to Twitter, it extends to Facebook and any other social media platforms where users can spread misinformation,” she said.
Last week, the White House deleted a tweet after Twitter added context contradicting its claim. The tweet, posted by the White House on Oct. 1, reads: “Seniors are getting the biggest increase in their social security checks in 10 years through President Biden’s leadership.” It was deleted the next day after Twitter added context pointing out that the increase was tied to a 1972 law requiring automatic increases based on the cost of living changes. According to a description under the annotation, “Context is written by people who use Twitter, and appears when rated helpful by others.”
A White House official told Politico that the tweet was deleted because “the point was incomplete.” Confirming the tweet deletion, Jean-Pierre similarly stated at a press briefing on Wednesday that the statement was incomplete.
What do you think about Musk charging $7.99 a month for a Twitter Blue subscription and Biden’s concerns about Twitter spewing lies all over the world? Let us know in the comments section below.
