After Elon Musk's announcement of charging $8 for the Twitter Blue Subscription that will have other perks, Esther Crawford, the VP of Twitter, announced the details of the upcoming Twitter labels.
A lot of folks have asked about how you'll be able to distinguish between @TwitterBlue subscribers with blue checkmarks and accounts that are verified as official, which is why we’re introducing the “Official" label to select accounts when we launch. pic.twitter.com/0p2Ae5nWpO
— Esther Crawford ✨ (@esthercrawford) November 8, 2022
According to Crawford, there will be separate official label for certain "government accounts, commercial companies, business partners, major media outlets, publishers and public figures," as reported by Hypebeast.
Official Label Not for Sale
The official label will only be given at Twitter's discretion. Therefore, there could be a more selective process compared to simply getting verified on the platform. This also means that not all previously verified accounts will get an "Official" label, plus, the label will not be available for purchase.
However, not everyone in the company agrees with the latest changes. Some have already criticized the nature of the Official label due to the lack of objectivity in discerning the importance of an organization or a person.
Lack of Transparency
Twitter has also received flak after their launch of the "official" label. This is due to the lack of transparency regarding the labels. The criteria in which the label is given has not been disclosed, nor have the standards been shared with the public.
Users have also expressed their concern about being bombarded with advertisements and promotional tweets that may not be related to their interests. This was addressed by Twitter's VP, saying that such advertisements would only be visible to specific users.
Nevertheless, Twitter has also acknowledged that there are still issues to be addressed, but they are currently working on it.
Twitter's Official Label
This is not the first time that Twitter is adding labels to its platform. In the past, there have been labels such as "verified," which is for accounts of public figures, media companies, and celebrities. There are also labels for "protected" or "sensitive" accounts of celebrities or users who have reported threats directed at them.
With the "official" label, Twitter hopes to establish a line between transparency and credibility in its network. They have also made clear that the label is not intended to be a marketing tool.
Rather, it is an aid for those users who seek a more dependable and credible news source in the form of an official or famous account on the platform.
A Credible Platform
For months now, Twitter has been struggling with issues regarding fake news and bots on its platform. They have also received backlash for not being a credible social media platform for news and information. They have received issues regarding the algorithms that are in place, as well as the lack of transparency regarding the platform.
This is why Twitter has been working on resolving the issues. They are also taking steps to be a reliable and credible platform for news and information. The recent updates on the official label could be the first step towards achieving such.
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Written by April Fowell
