They were guarantees of authenticity – and often of credibility -, they are now powerful vectors of disinformation: on Twitter, the “blue badges” offer fake news and conspiracy theories a sounding board and unexpected visibility. In June, an account thus certified wrongly assured that the “Zombie Drug”a mixture of fentanyl and xylazine that is wreaking havoc in the United States, had “invaded” France, a message shared hundreds of times, found the verification teams of AFP Factual.
While it was previously necessary to meet certain conditions – for example to be a public figure – and to submit to an identity check, it is now enough to subscribe to the Twitter Blue service (about ten euros per month) to be able to display the blue tick on their profile and thus benefit from better visibility thanks to the platform’s algorithms. For many users, the confusion remains: the badge often remains synonymous with the credibility of the words and the identity of the holder.
Another recent example: a fake ad inviting citizens of North Africa and the Middle East to participate “to the Ukrainian counter-offensive” in exchange for access to the nationality of certain Western countries, has been relayed thousands of times by several certified accounts. As for Europa, the last battlea Swedish neo-Nazi propaganda film well known to white supremacist and anti-Semitic circles, it has had a new lease of life thanks to this type of accounts.
“Whether on Ukraine, the Covid or the recent riots in France, the main axes of disinformation are pushed by accounts which are badged and which benefit from algorithmic push”underlines Tristan Mendès France, specialist in digital cultures and online extremism. “Twitter’s blue tick was once a sign of authority and authenticity, but it’s now inextricably linked to promoting hate and conspiracy”abounds Imran Ahmed, director general of the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), in a note published in early June.
Algorithm
Launched in November 2022 in the greatest confusion, the new authentication system of the platform led by Elon Musk was supposed to allow, according to the billionaire, to put everyone on an equal footing, to fight against fake profiles and to diversify the sources of business income.
Thanks to this new system, accounts spreading racist, anti-Semitic, conspiratorial or provocative remarks, which had been banned from the social network during the pre-Musk era, have made a comeback thanks to a “amnesty”. Result, in the space of a few weeks, some of these accounts have garnered more subscribers than in fifteen years of existence on Twitter, which now claims more than 500 million active subscribers.
“There are far-right activists who felt ostracized by the big platforms that censored them when they decided to tighten the bolts in 2017”, after the death of an anti-racist activist mowed down in Charlottesville by a neo-Nazi sympathizer, decrypts Tristan Mendès France. In this context, the change in certification rules on Twitter was a boon for far-right activists who, by buying the blue badge, were able to “regain visibility”, he adds. A change that also attracted the conspiracy, seduced by Elon Musk’s speeches in favor of total freedom of expression.
Unsuccessful reports
From April, the alarm bell was sounded by Newsguard. The company, which evaluates the credibility of websites, points out the “new legitimacy granted” To “certain influential infox peddlers”. Three months later, the trend has intensified. Certified accounts have stated in particular that “trans people are pedophiles”, “diversity is a password for white genocide” or even that“Hitler was right” – all without being worried, despite the reports, according to the CCDH.
For Chine Labbé, vice-president of Newsguard, this “dangerous cocktail” is all the more so as the “qualitative sources” were numerous to refuse to pay the subscription and have, de factolost in visibility. “With the emergence of Threads [application créée par Meta pour concurrencer Twitter, NDLR], it is difficult to predict what will happen but the risk would be that all reliable sources leave the platform”she adds.
Asked by AFP, Twitter returned its automatic response to any request for comment: an emoji in the shape of excrement.