Twitter Are Considering Introducing a Fake News Button
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| PC Magazine |
The concept is simple - each tweet has a drop down menu containing the options to report the tweet or block or mute the user responsible for it. Twitter are proposing that a new tab would be added to this menu allowing users to report the tweet as a source of fake news. Twitter haven't confirmed this themselves, but inside sources have reported that this is the more likely format.
Whether or not we'll ever actually see it in action is another matter. While it's definitely on the table, concerns have been expressed that it could easily be misused, especially by those with a particular political or social agenda. In this sense, legitimate news stories and opinion pieces could start getting flagged en masse as a form of protest against the ideas they represent.
For this reason, Twitter have made sure to clarify that there are 'no current plans' to actually launch the feature, and even if it does launch, it might take on an entirely different form to the one currently being proposed. Twitter will have to find a way to assure that users can't use it maliciously, regardless of what it comes out looking like.
The real spreaders of fake news aren't people, though, at least not directly. Twitter's biggest problem are bots which spread bogus propaganda, and while it makes sense to implement a means of actively reporting fake news, bot blocking is the thing that Twitter really need to throw their weight behind.
Callum is a film school graduate who is now making a name for himself as a journalist and content writer. His vices include flat whites and 90s hip-hop. Follow him @Songbird_Callum
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Twitter Are Considering Introducing a Fake News Button
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Wednesday, July 05, 2017
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Reviewed by Unknown
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Wednesday, July 05, 2017
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