Twitter has rolled out a new feature which allows users to hide unwanted replies to control the level of toxicity on the platform.
Twitter announced on Thursday it is rolling out the new tool globally. It also disclosed that it had been testing the option earlier this year in selected countries including Canada, Japan and the US.
The company wrote in a blog post, “Currently, repliers can shift the topic or tone of a discussion and derail what you and your audience want to talk about.
“We learned that the feature is a useful new way to manage your conversations.”
To hide unwanted replies users can tap a gray icon that appears on their post and select “Hide reply.” The unwanted replies will be quarantined moved to a different page , where they can still be viewed by other users. To see the hidden replies, users can select the “hidden reply” icon on the tweet.
Also, Twitter will also ask if the owner of the account would like to block the person whose reply they hid.
The latest move is part of Twitter’s effort to sanitize the platform and improve on its service.
The company also said it’s looking into other ways to tackle this issue, such as exploring who can reply to or see certain conversations.
The new feature can also be employed to block unwanted replies or unrelated to the content of the tweet. They could also be used to silence harassment, trolls or people with opposing viewpoints.
Twitter observed during the testing phase that most users hid replies they thought were irrelevant, off topic or “annoying.” Twitter also said public figures, such as politicians and reporters, aren’t hiding replies “very often.”
Twitter also observed that some users can be reluctant to use the new feature with fears about backlash from the replier, as they’ll be able to see that their comment has been hidden. Twitter said it will “continue to get feedback on this.”
