Have you ever suspected someone has shared an article on social media without actually reading it?
Well as it turns out, you are correct.
It’s a particularly big issue on Twitter, which has previously come under fire for its role in helping the spread of misinformation.
But the social media platform is now trialling a feature to prevent the spread of unread articles.
“Sharing an article can spark conversation, so you may want to read it before you Tweet it,” Twitter said.
“To help promote informed discussion, we’re testing a new prompt on Android –– when you Retweet an article that you haven’t opened on Twitter, we may ask if you’d like to open it first.”
Sharing an article can spark conversation, so you may want to read it before you Tweet it.
To help promote informed discussion, we're testing a new prompt on Android –– when you Retweet an article that you haven't opened on Twitter, we may ask if you'd like to open it first.
— Support (@Support) June 10, 2020
Twitter product leader Kayvon Beykpour added that while sharing links can be informative, it also has the ability to cause harm.
“It’s easy for links/articles to go viral on Twitter,” he said.
“This can be powerful but sometimes dangerous, especially if people haven’t read the content they’re spreading. This feature (on Android for now) encourages people to read a linked article prior to Retweeting it.”
It’s the latest innovation from Twitter to help curb the spread of misinformation on the platform.
Last month the company introduced a new feature, which gives users the ability to control who can respond to their Tweets.
It also recently marked a Tweet from US President Donald Trump with a fact-check label for the first time, after previously announcing it would fact check statements from political leaders, rather than deleting them.
