Twitter is back in news for its long criticised inability to deal with the problems in its platform. This time it is making headlines for alleged removing the popular ‘Like’ button from tweets in near future.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey reportedly said that he is planning to do away with the heart-shaped button soon.
“Right now we have a big Like button with a heart on it and we’re incentivizing people to want the number of likes to go up. Is that the right thing? Versus contributing to the public conversation or a healthy conversation? How do we incentivize healthy conversation?” said Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
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No matter what Dorsey’s comment actually meant or in whatever context he said that, but it appeared to be part of Twitter’s rethinking of the overall health of its platform. During the last Wired25 summit, last month, Dorsey had questioned the “like” button’s worth in facilitating meaningful communication.
As we’ve been saying for a while, we are rethinking everything about the service to ensure we are incentivizing healthy conversation, that includes the like button. We are in the early stages of the work and have no plans to share right now. https://t.co/k5uPe5j4CW
— Twitter Comms (@TwitterComms) October 29, 2018
However, Twitter seems in no hurry to push changes out the door. A Twitter spokesperson told the Telegraph, “At this point, there is no specific timeline for changes or particular planned changes to discuss.”
Also Read: Twitter considers removing “Like” button but not so soon
“We’re experimenting and considering numerous possible changes, all with an eye toward ensuring we’re incentivising the right behaviors to drive a healthy conversation,” said Jack Dorsey.
Short story on “like.” We’ve been open that we’re considering it. Jack even mentioned it in front of the US Congress. There’s no timeline. It’s not happening “soon.” https://t.co/jXBmkudWYv
— Brandon Borrman (@bborrman) October 29, 2018
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Twitter’s attempt to eradicate hate speech cannot be ignored as well. It has made changes in itself to remove the antagonism from its public feed. However, Twitter’s overall record has been one of inconsistency and waffling, it has received little credit for the changes it has made.
So now a bunch of folks are going to think I’m ignoring them because I use ‘like’ to show people I read and appreciated their tweet when I don’t have the inclination or energy to respond.
This is a really terrible idea, @twitter @jack.
— Imani Gandy Corn ? (@AngryBlackLady) October 29, 2018
