The Guardian view on Twitter’s blue ticks: a conflict of interest | Editorial

Social media companies must accept that their duties to democracy rival their commercial incentivesIn the early days of the digital revolution, it seemed the old hierarchies might be eliminated. The lone blogger could challenge the media giant. The idealism did not last long. Old corporates learned how to exploit the new market; new tech companies acquired huge empires, with their own hierarchies. People with more “friends” and “followers” have more impact. More significa