Recently in this space, Twitter's position as the open sewer of the Internet and social media was highlighted. The ability of anonymous trolls, or those who hide behind screen names, to spew lies and filth was acknowledged and lamented.
But anonymity and pseudonymity aren't the only problems with Twitter.
If you're familiar with the site, you know that some users are verified with blue checks beside their names. These are people in the public eye -- politicians, entertainers, athletes, media personalities, and others -- who go through a process to prove that they're actually themselves. Anyone can claim to be Donald Trump or LeBron James or Brit Hume or George Takei, but through the use of the blue check, Twitter has verified that they're legitimate and authentic.
And the only thing that's worse than the way anonymous users behave on Twitter is the way that some of the blue-checks conduct themselves.
Some of the most vile garbage that trends on Twitter comes from verified accounts. Some of the most outrageous conspiracy theories, outright falsehoods, and scurrilous rumors have been spread by blue-checks.
This is most prominently seen from "journalists" and political analysts from left-leaning publications. They take their tendency to spread rumors by attributing them to unnamed sources to an entirely new level on Twitter. And quite often, they'll throw in a few vulgarities or profanities for emphasis. These staffers and contributors for outlets like CNN, MSNBC, Salon, Slate, etc., probably think sprinkling their tweets with f-words makes them look tough. It actually only makes them look like they have limited vocabularies and aren't qualified for the positions they hold.
How many blue-checks carried the water recently for unfounded allegations about Lindsey Graham? The furor actually ended up being legitimized in the mainstream press, much like the blatant lies that swirled on Twitter about former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin.
Facebook really doesn't have this problem. But it's oddly entertaining to watch a certain commentator (who is unnamed here, because this person has a nasty vindictive streak and has an inflated view of self-importance and influence) who is one of Twitter's biggest stereotypical users rail about Facebook's toxicity. There's been far more garbage spread on Twitter than on Facebook. And a large percentage of it comes from verified blue-checks.
Don't believe it? Go to Twitter and take a look at what's trending at any given moment. On political subjects, a majority of the tweets will be anti-Trump or anti-conservative. And the blue-checks will be leading the way, spouting obscenities and promoting ideas so out of this world they appear to be fueled by a combination of meth and LSD.
Twitter is bad. Anonymous trolls are bad enough. But verified users with agendas and no sense of decency are worse. Verification of identity does not equal verification of intelligence or integrity. Keep that in mind when you wade into that bird poop-filled corner of social media.
