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- Elon Musk is giving out free blue checkmarks to some who complain about Twitter Blue.
- He gave them to some users who've been vocal about blocking others who now pay for verification.
- Lil Nas X and Bette Midler are among the celebrities who say they didn't pay for Twitter Blue.
Twitter users who complain about being given blue checkmarks for free or back a campaign to block those who do pay for them are being trolled by Elon Musk.
Paul Krugman, the economist and New York Times columnist, tweeted Sunday that his blue checkmark reappeared but that he had "nothing to do with that" and insisted he wasn't paying for it. Musk replied to the tweet and shared a photo of a crying baby with a Twitter Blue check mark.
—Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 23, 2023
The billionaire also appeared to make light of the situation by replying "A troll, me??" when account T(w)itter Daily News shared screenshots of users who'd backed the #BlockTheBlue campaign and were given blue checkmarks for free.
It comes after some Twitter users started a movement to encourage others to block accounts that pay for Twitter Blue by tweeting with the hashtag #BlockTheBlue. Twitter then started giving some of them free checkmarks.
Mashable journalist Matt Binder was among the group of users to get a free checkmark after he wrote about the #BlockTheBlue campaign. Binder told Insider that Musk started handing them out when the push started "gaining steam".
"That's the whole reason why Musk decided to start 'gifting' or really 'shaming' big accounts that had been vocal about Twitter removing all legacy verified accounts, only verifying people willing to pay Musk for the honor, and wanted to block these accounts," he said.
The reporter said that receiving the checkmarks was "proof" that the campaign was "getting to Musk."
"I'd say the vast majority of people blocking Twitter Blue subscribers are doing so as they come across them being annoying in their replies or in the mentions of others, and it'll likely continue unabated," Binder said. "However, I will say, I think this is the very first funny thing Elon Musk has ever done."
Celebrities including Lil Nas X and Bette Midler tweeted to announce they hadn't paid for Twitter Blue. "On my soul i didn't pay for twitter blue, u will feel my wrath tesla man!" Lil Nas X wrote.
Bette Midler said: "Yes, Elon gave me back my blue check but I didn't pay for it. Does that make me a good guy or a bad guy? I'm so confused. So far only 400 people have signed on to get their checks back. Guess #Twitter's going thru an 'unscheduled disassembly', too."
Twitter responded to a request for comment from Insider with an automated email that didn't address the query.