According to Newsweek, 3/4 of the most “viral” publications about the military conflict are promoted by owners of “verified” X-accounts. The verification of accounts for money was introduced by Musk in March this year. To get a “blue tick” it is enough to pay 8 USD. X algorithms give priority to posts published by owners of “verified” profiles.
The possibility of getting a “tick” for money turned out to be a real manna from heaven for bots. Accounts “verified” by the X administration allow them to reach a larger audience. NewsGuard’s analysis shows that 186 out of 250 major fake news stories were published in X between 07.10-14.10 by the owners of verified profiles. Some of the most deceptive fake news includes:
- Ukraine’s sale of weapons to Hamas.
- Israel’s murder of 33 thousand people. children in the Gaza Strip over the past five years.
- Video of Palestinian children in cages.
- Video of captured Israeli officials.
- Staging an attack by CNN journalists.
- The White House allocates USD 8 billion in aid to Israel.
In total, publications that were not true received 1.3 million shares. Within one week, users from all over the world viewed them 100 million times.