Seeing tweets from certain people more often is not just a coincidence, as Twitter reportedly has a secret VIP list that includes accounts favored for "increased visibility." The social media company's CEO, Elon Musk, is said to be on the said list, which is probably why users frequently see the controversial billionaire's tweets all over Twitter.
Prominent Politicians, Internet Personalities, Basketball Star Included in Twitter VIP List
The revelation about the Twitter secret VIP list came from Platformer, citing internal documents that came from the company itself. Based on the documents, Twitter has 35 VIP accounts whose posts are "monitored and promoted for greater visibility."
Platformer's managing editor, Zoë Schiffer, revealed only 14 names out of the 35 VIP users. Aside from Musk, NBA superstar Lebron James is also VIP user, as well as congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro. The president of the United States of America, Joe Biden, also belongs to the said list.
Some relatively popular personalities are also on the VIP list, like Twitter user @catturd2, a known Donald Trump supporter, and YouTuber Mr. Beast. As per Business Insider, catturd2 had a couple of conversations with Musk on Twitter.
Platformer said that Twitter engineers are doing their best to make the tweets from the VIP accounts more visible than the others. Apparently, the VIP users' tweet boost supersedes an existing Twitter algorithm that prevents too many post the same accounts from showing up.
Business Insider noted that the 14 names on the VIP list come from both sides of the political spectrum, as evidenced by the inclusion of President Biden whereas former President Trump is not on the list. It can be recalled that Trump's Twitter account was restored last November, as Musk promised to every Twitter user that everyone is entitled to free speech.
Ocacio-Cortez being on the Twitter VIP list is also notable since the lawmaker had a bad history with Musk on Twitter. Platformer did not reveal the complete list to protect their sources. The reasoning behind the list was also not revealed. As per Engadget, the report about the Twitter VIP list follows Musk's announcement that Twitter will make its algorithms open source.
Related Article: Twitter Blue Subscription Now Required for Tweets to be Recommended
Twitter VIP List Contrary To Musk Committing to Equal Treatment for All
Platformer said that Twitter originally plans to monitor the engagement of the VIP lister's tweets amid suspicions that Twitter purposely reduce the visibility of some accounts on the platform. As per Daily Mail, Musk has been vocal about equal treatment for everyone but the reported VIP list appears to be a step back from his commitment.
The VIP list is also seen as a confirmation from previous reports revealing that Musk told his engineers to boost his tweets, as President Biden's tweet during the Super Bowl overshadowed his.
It is unclear if the VIP lister's Twitter boost will affect the plans to make the Twitter Blue subscribers' tweets more visible in the For You feed.
