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'Read before you retweet' tool rolls out on Twitter

Twitter wants all of its users to read articles before they share them on the site - AP
Twitter wants all of its users to read articles before they share them on the site - AP

Twitter will begin telling all of its users to read articles before they share them on the social network following a successful test of the feature.

In June, the company began testing a new prompt for users of its Android app designed to make sure that they had read articles before sharing them. At the time, it said the feature was designed to “promote informed discussion.”

The social network announced on Thursday that the test was a success, resulting in people opening 40pc more articles after seeing the prompt.

It also said that the banners, which warn users that “headlines don’t tell the full story,” had caused a 33pc rise in people opening articles before they share them on the site.

The company now plans to launch the banners to all of its users in the coming weeks, not just people who use Twitter’s Android app.

“It’s easy for articles to go viral on Twitter,” Twitter’s director of product management Suzanne Xie told TechCrunch, “at times, this can be great for sharing information, but can also be detrimental for discourse, especially if people haven’t read what they’re Tweeting.”

The banners are part of a number of recent tweaks designed to cut down on the amount of misinformation and harmful content circulating on Twitter. The social network announced in May that users would be able to limit who can reply to their posts, a potential way to cut down on harassment.

Twitter’s announcement that it is expanding its banners comes after the social network announced earlier this month that it would step up its efforts to fight misinformation ahead of the US presidential election in November.

The company said it will expand its policies to remove any posts which contain “false or misleading information” about an election result, such as tweets declaring a winner before votes have been certified.

Do you think the 'read before you retweet' tool is a good idea? Let us know in the comments section below.