Twitter users have started a campaign to block and ignore those who pay up to keep their checkmarks.
A @BlockTheBlue Twitter handle was created, but Twitter swiftly blocked it, and in the meantime, a hashtag of the same name has been trending.
In the meantime, reactions are still pouring in over the latest policy of Twitter CEO, Elon Musk. Users are blocking anyone with a blue checkmark next to their name.
Although Musk has yet to comment on the trending hashtag intended to disrupt Twitter’s new verification mechanism, the CEO liked a tweet criticizing the campaign from Epic Games founder Tim Sweeney.
Sweeney compared #BlockTheBlue participants to “losers and goons” and criticized Twitter’s “elite-only verification system” in a statement praised by Musk.
Many “Block the Blue” online activists advised others to discover verified accounts to block by scrolling through the replies to each tweet made by Musk, noting that the new policy that prioritizes verified comments at the top of threads makes it easier.
Musk received similar criticism in November after introducing Twitter Blue’s premium verification option.