Let’s Get This Check!

Verification has been on the top of everyone’s mind. Before the great social media surge, verification was simply a way to verify sources of information. To let you know that you are speaking to an authentic source. Now verification brings status, fame, and even money, with an entire sub-culture dedicated to what that blue checkmark can do. 

Verification has issues of its own, just like any other signaling system. It wasn’t always apparent on Twitter/Instagram why some users had blue ticks or whether the verification system gave some media sources more credibility than others. However, there seemed to be a general consensus that if someone had a blue mark, they were more likely to be a reliable source. Tech firms, however, have undermined that signaling system with paid-for verification. Many fake accounts for lawmakers appeared after Twitter/Instagram started offering blue ticks that required a subscription, spreading false information. This was done for amusement in some cases and not in others. But to Twitter’s credit, it dealt with that problem swiftly, but misinformation on the platform is now a more serious problem.

To use an analogy, we wouldn’t consider getting a PhD seriously if it meant paying $15 a month for a subscription to a university. Much like paying a few hundred dollars to paint the word around the workplace doesn’t give a company integrity, purchasing a blue tick on Twitter or Instagram doesn’t give users authority. The distinction is that when their employers use subpar signals to promote desirable qualities, most employees are extremely doubtful. Social media users aren’t, at least not yet. But undermining the signaling system is going to have far-reaching consequences. Going forward, it would be smart to question posts by verified accounts as much as any others.

Commentary through film and television has even arisen, with this sub-culture constantly being parodied and exaggerated with individuals being portrayed as caricatures.

But why would you pay for a check? Can the access be worth it? Maybe instead of worrying about a blue check, get on Fanbase and get the right kind of check.