Twitter to test features to limit abuse, may allow users to filter replies

Current Affairs
Twitter Inc said on Wednesday it will test new features early this year that would allow users to control who can reply to their tweets, as it looks to limit abuse and harassment on the platform.
Social media firms are under pressure to address harassment on their sites, which often occurs in unsolicited replies targeting women and minorities, and Twitter Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey has promised since 2018 to increase the "health" of public conversation.
"We want to help people feel safe participating in the conversation on Twitter by giving them more control over the conversations they start," the San Francisco-based company said in a tweet.
The company had launched a feature late last year allowing users to hide certain replies on their tweets as a part of its efforts to clean up abusive content and make the social media platform more user-friendly.
In a presentation at the annual CES tech conference, the company laid out plans, according to reports by several tech media, including The Verge and TechCrunch.

According to the presentation, users will be able to choose four different settings for replies: Global, which would allow anyone to respond, Group, which would allow replies from people a user followed or mentioned; Panel, or people mentioned in a tweet, and Statement, or no replies at all....Read More

'Huge fail': Twitter CEO says not done enough to protect victims of abuse

Companies News:

Twitter Inc Chief Executive Jack Dorsey said that Silicon Valley companies, including his own, have not done enough to protect victims of online abuse, calling it a "huge fail."

Interviewed via Twitter by Kara Swisher, co-founder of the tech news site Recode, Dorsey tweeted that he would give himself a 'C' grade for what Swisher termed "tech responsibility."
"We've made progress, but it has been scattered and not felt enough," he tweeted in response to Swisher's questions. "Changing the experience hasn't been meaningful enough. And we've put most of the burden on the victims of abuse (that's a huge fail)."

Twitter, along with online social media network Facebook Inc, has faced criticism for abusive posts, fake users and inaccurate news stories on its service. The company has been investing heavily to improve what Dorsey has described as the "collective health" of Twitter.

Dorsey said he does not like how Twitter tends to incentivise outrage, short-term thinking, echo chambers, and fragmented conversations, and that the lack of diversity in the company has not helped in combating such problems.

He said Twitter's work against "automations and coordinated campaigns," along with its collaboration with various government agencies, has left it in a better position to combat the threat of misinformation for the 2020 U.S. presidential elections.


 U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia used social media during the 2016 U.S. elections to sway voters. Moscow denies that charge.