Hundreds of millions and billions of dollars of sales are driven by the clout of badges on social media. That's where we are now. Small one off ethical problems become social problems when they aren't one-off and then become legal problems.

Of course it is up to consumer, investor, vendors to be more discerning. Of course, they aren't. So it's not a legal problem, right now, it is a social problem and that is being addressed by reporters and the platforms. That's where we are. It is completely congruent for ProPublica to be involved at this stage.

> In response to information provided by ProPublica and the findings of its own investigation, Meta has so far removed fraudulently applied verification badges from more than 300 Instagram profiles, and continues to review accounts. That includes the accounts of Mike Vazquez and Lexie Salameh, two stars of the MTV reality show “Siesta Key.” Rather than get verified for their TV work, they were falsely branded online as musicians in order to receive verification. They lost their badges approximately two weeks ago and did not respond to requests for comment.

ProPublica "journalists" Craig Silverman and Bianca Fortis are total douchebags for doing this and bragging about it.

For all intents and purposes, the MTV stars are public figures and have visibility. This is such a lame move by ProPublica to attack the brand of these folks, which is what they derive their income from.

I feel like so much of this industry has turned to attention and drama seeking. This isn't journalism. This is throwing stones and complaining and trying to get clicks for it.

Shame on Craig, Bianca, and ProPublica.