Twitter Tests Letting Users Report Tweets Containing Misinformation

Spotted some misinformation circulating on Twitter? The social media company is starting to test letting users directly report a misleading tweet to the platform’s content moderators.

The experiment is occurring for some users based in the US, South Korea, and Australia, the company announced on Tuesday. “We’re testing a feature for you to report Tweets that seem misleading—as you see them,” Twitter explained. “We're assessing if this is an effective approach so we’re starting small.”

If you’re an eligible user, you’ll find the option after clicking the “...” on the right corner of the offending tweet. Then click “Report Tweet.” An option will appear enabling you to report the tweet as misleading.

Twitter will then ask you if the tweet is misleading because it's related to politics, health, or something else. If you click politics, the company will inquire if the alleged misinformation is tied to an election; if you click health, Twitter will ask if it's about COVID-19.

If you do flag a tweet as misleading, the company will review the report using a combination of human content moderators and automation, Twitter told PCMag. “We may not take action on and cannot respond to each report in the experiment, but your input will help us identify trends so that we can improve the speed and scale of our broader misinformation work,” the company added.

The test occurs weeks after Twitter was spotted experimenting with new warning labels that can be placed on to a tweet containing misinformation. When clicked, the same labels can redirect a user to a Twitter page with more credible information on the topic.

The social media platform has also been trying to crack down on COVID-19 misinformation. In March, the company debuted a new 5-strike system that can permanently ban a user from the platform for posting repeated COVID-19 falsehoods or out-of-context information regarding the virus or the vaccines.

:story: PC Magazine