Bob loses his verified Twitter status and NBA star LeBron James remains

April 20 (Reuters) – Twitter on Thursday began removing old blue check marks from user profiles as celebrities such as pop icon Beyoncé and Pope Francis lost their verified statuses.

Some characters like basketball star LeBron James and author Stephen King still have their checkmarks.

The author of The Shining King, who previously called Musk a good Twitter fit, tweeted: “My Twitter account says I signed up for Twitter Blue. I haven’t. My Twitter account says I gave a phone number. I don’t have.”

“You’re welcome, Namaste,” Musk tweeted to him, along with a folded-hands emoji.

The Verge reported that James, who previously said he wouldn’t pay for verification, didn’t pay to keep the checkmark.

“Personally I’m paying for a little,” Musk tweeted separately. He then tweeted, “Just Shatner, LeBron, and King,” referring to Star Trek actor William Shatner, who complained last month that he was being forced to pay to keep his blue checkmark.

Among those who lost their badges were former US President Donald Trump, Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) co-founder Bill Gates and reality TV star Kim Kardashian.

Under Musk’s ownership, Twitter has changed how it distributes the coveted blue ticks that were previously given to well-known individuals, journalists, CEOs, politicians, and foundations after verifying their identities. They served as a sign of authenticity.

Musk said in November that Twitter would begin charging $8 per month for the badge in an effort to unlock new revenue streams beyond advertising.

The company later offered checkmarks in other colors — gold for businesses and gray for government, multilateral organizations, and officials.

It’s also started showing labels like “State Belonging” and “Automated By” against accounts to show when an account is linked to a government or a bot.

The American non-profit National Public Radio (NPR) stopped posting content to its official 52 Twitter feed after Twitter labeled them “state media” and later “government funded media”.

The Canadian Public Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) also paused its activities on Twitter and sparred with Musk over Twitter’s definition of government-funded.

Additional reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru; Editing by Stephen Coates

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