Blue-Check Havoc: Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover Fuels a Media Meltdown

Forget the Polls • AIPAC Spends Against Pittsburgh Dem • Complete Guide to GOP Candidates [View in your browser]( | [Update your preferences](newsletter=vf) [Vanity Fair Hive logo image]( Blue-Check Havoc: Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover Fuels a Media Meltdown Good morning from the Hive newsroom! A sense of ominous uncertainty is coursing through the media world right now thanks to Elon Musk’s rapid Twitter transformation, writes [Joe Pompeo](. Some journalists are deleting DMs, considering bolting from the platform, and “amid the mishegoss, the blue check itself has become a source of agitation, considering Musk’s plan to begin [charging]( users $8 a month for the privilege of verification.” On the latest episode of Inside the Hive, Joe Hagan and Emily Jane Fox [talk]( to CNBC’s Julia Boorstin about her new book, When Women Lead, and catch up with Molly Jong-Fast and Abigail Tracy about the coming elections. Speaking of the midterms, Bess Levin [has compiled]( a complete guide to all the GOP candidates who should “scare the s--t out of you.” And Tracy [finds]( Democrats panicking about a typically safely blue Pittsburgh House race, where pro-Israel lobby AIPAC is helping the Republican. Elsewhere, Charlotte Klein [notes]( that CNN remains bedeviled by its empty nightly lineup as it plans to return Jake Tapper to his afternoon slot. Thanks for reading! [Blue-Check Havoc: Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover Fuels a Media Meltdown]( By [Joe Pompeo]( [Journalists are deleting DMs, scoffing at Musk’s $8 verification fee, and even considering bolting from the platform. Substack, meanwhile, is cashing in on the chaos. “We shouldn’t need to fret so much about a dictator holding dominion over a vast digital media empire,” says cofounder Hamish McKenzie.]( [Read more button](   [The Complete Guide to the GOP Midterm Candidates Who Should Scare the S--t Out of You]( By [Bess Levin]( [From governorships to Congress to secretary of state races, these are the people who, given the opportunity, will do unimaginable damage to the country.]( [Read more button](   [Forget Polls. These Midterms Are Leaning Hard on Vibes.]( By [Emily Jane Fox and Joe Hagan]( [Will abortion sway voters—and races? Plus, why everyone would be better off with more women in charge.]( [Read more button](   [Why Democrats Are Beginning to Panic About a Typically Safely Blue Pittsburgh House Race]( By [Abigail Tracy]( [The super PAC tied to pro-Israel lobby AIPAC is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to beat out Democrat Summer Lee. Plus, a confusion over the real Mike Doyle.]( [Read more button](   [Jake Tapper Wasn’t the Answer to CNN’s Prime-Time Headache]( By [Charlotte Klein]( [The veteran anchor’s 9 p.m. assignment, which fueled speculation about a permanent move to prime time, will be temporary after all. Whether it was a failed audition soured by poor ratings, or Chris Licht’s plan all along, the outlet remains bedeviled by its empty nightly lineup.]( [Read more button](   Get on the list Subscribe to our Hollywood newsletter for your essential industry and awards-season news, every day. [Sign Up Now](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn](   This e-mail was sent to you by The Hive. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, vanityfair@newsletter.vf.com, to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe](newsletter=vf) Sent from Condé Nast, 1 World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007 Copyright © 2022 Condé Nast