Parody Twitter (commonly shortened to PTWT by the community) is a community on the social media platform 'Twitter' (currently known as 'X') where users imitate/roleplay as popular characters from a piece of online or physical media or original characters the users have created themselves.[1] The community gained notability after a parody account of Elon Musk surfaced onto the platform.

The size of the community is currently undetermined, but it may be over 2 thousand cocurrent members.[citation needed]

Account Layout

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Most Parody Accounts contain a pinned on their profile that shows the character they are roleplaying as, as well as their information if their character deviates from the original media.[2] The style of pinned varies in every account. To make sure they are not mistaken as a real account, the profile normally contains a warning that they are a Parody Account (whether that be in the name or in the bio) as per requirement by Twitter's policies.[3]

Misconceptions

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Contrary to popular belief, Parody Accounts and Roleplay Accounts on Twitter are not classified as the same (albeit some Parody/RP accounts have combined both), but the definition of both remain unclear.

Game

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In 2024, 'Parody Twitter: Story Mode' was announced. It was planned to be for PCs. The game was cancelled after the game's creator was exposed.

Controversies

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Deer Park Impersonation Incident

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On June 26th, 2024, a parody on Twitter called @deerparkpd, was created, impersonating the Police Department of the fictional village of Deer Park. The account soon received a verification badge on X that shows that they were a real police agency, despite being a parody.[4] However, there was a real location in the U.S called Deer Park, located in Texas. Upon learning this, the account owners immediately announced that they were a parody, and their verification status was removed.[4]

  1. ^ "The rise of fake, parody accounts on Twitter and how to spot them - Dubawa". dubawa.org. 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  2. ^ "Want to Start a Parody Account on X (formerly Twitter)? Here Are Some Ideas". Lifewire. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  3. ^ "Misleading and deceptive identities policy". via Twitter Help Desk. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  4. ^ a b Key, Malachi (2024-07-22). "How 2 teenagers accidentally impersonated the Deer Park Police Department on social media". KPRC. Retrieved 2024-08-07.