Should Twitter Implement a Downvote Button?
by Sara PintoMarch 19th, 2022
Too Long; Didn't Read
In this slogging thread, the technology channel took the chance to discuss the latest news about Twitter and how they're considering adding a downvote button. The app has announced that they will extend a worldwide test. This feature can help filter what appears on the timeline. Some specialists say that this can improve the quality of the interactions in the app. Considering these pieces of information, we asked the technology community what they thought about this addition and we covered some of the downsides.People Mentioned
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The apps we use daily are constantly improving, so it's no surprise when they announce the possibility of a new feature. In this slogging thread, the technology channel took the chance to discuss the latest news about Twitter and how they're considering adding a downvote button.
This Slogging thread by Sara Pinto, Jack Boreham, Mónica Freitas, Limarc Ambalina and Abeer occurred in slogging's official #technology channel, and has been edited for readability.
Will Twitter have a downvote button?
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/twitter-begins-global-test-new-feature-downvote-button-rcna14847
After positive feedback, the app has announced that they will extend a worldwide test, which was announced in July, with this possible new feature.
This possibility can help filter what appears on your timeline and the order of it. Some specialists say that this can improve the quality of the interactions in the app, but can also have some downsides
Mónica Freitas Jack Boreham Abeer Limarc Ambalina Linh Smooke Blake Cram would you like to see this feature on Twitter?
Sara Pinto definitely not; I don't think there is any need! Far too many trolls on Twitter. Let's spread son positivity rather than negativity!
Since I'm not a Twitter user, I'm really interested in seeing what the users have to say!
Jack Boreham Do you think there would be more cons than pros? Supposedly, the all point is to filter what appears, so I'm assuming that the most harmful tweets would show fewer times
Sara Pinto My first thought was a bit like Jack Boreham's. Twitter is like this safe heaver where you can post whatever you want. Suppose you don't want to see some type of content; you can just unfollow or hide that post. I've never felt the need for a downvote button. Besides, hashtags already help you filter out what you want to see in your feed, so...
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
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I think they won't for 2 reasons: 1. Twitter is used a lot by businesses. There's a reasons many businesses don't use Reddit, no one wants to see one of their marketing posts get downvoted and sh*t on
2. You don't need a downvote button for such serious things like "feedback on offensive tweets" that calls for a greater action. If something is truly offensive, greater effort should be required than a simple downvote. The user should have to click a report button and choose an option of why it's offensive
Mónica Freitas Those are some good points! But me being the devil's advocate, you can do all that in other social media apps, and it mostly leads you to nowhere (when you don't want to see specific stuff). It still gets retweeted and shown on your timeline, for example. If you had the option, you wouldn't use it?
Limarc Ambalina I also don't think they will do it. For me, it's the same story of Facebook having a dislike button. Heard it a million times, and never happened. I agree that it doesn't make a lot of sense since many use it for business, and can end up being prejudicial.
Limarc Ambalina But when it comes to filtering and offensive content, I have to play the other side. Most times, when we denounce something on social media, it doesn't get anything done, or it takes a loooong time to work. So, how bad could it be to be in the hands of the users the power to downvote something?
Sara Pinto If you block the original posts, you won't see it even when retweeted. So, I don't think I'd use it. It just seems pointless to me, and like Jack said, it's just spreading negativity 😂
Sara Pinto Imagine if insta had that feature... I think it'd be equally pointless. And imagine you have a brand. Trolls could ruin your marketing efforts with downvotes.
Mónica Freitas I see. I mean, you can block it, but nothing happens to the original post itself. Saying this, I still understand what you mean. It can become prejudicial, especially if you are trying to grow a business or something like that
Sara Pinto, I wonder if they're actually going to go ahead with this. And what sort of "studies" they've done to see the general users opinion on the new feature.
Mónica Freitas Since they say it was a global audience, I even imagined they applied the feature to some users to try it out. We have to wait and see what they hold for us!
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Sara Pinto Personally, I don’t want to see this on Twitter. If I wanted that functionality, I’d be checking out a thread on Reddit. I’m really not a fan of how all these social media platforms are just copying features off each other. It’s starting to feel like they’re losing their originality and they’re all just slight variations of the same thing.
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Abeer I haven't thought about that, but I agree. At this point, they're just copypasting features and ruins the whole point of having different apps. But don't you think it could help when it comes to, for example, offensive tweets?
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