Twitter iOS App Now Lets All Users Limit Who Can Reply to Their Tweets [Update: Now Available]

[MacRumors]

Twitter has updated its official iOS app to allow all users to limit who can reply to their tweets. The company has been testing the "conversation participants" feature with select users since May, but it now appears to be ready for a wider rollout.

"In May, we tested a new way to have a chat with exactly who you want, so you can create and consume more meaningful changes," reads the update release notes on the App Store. "Now, everyone can try this new feature and choose who can reply to their tweets."

The feature appears in the compose tweet screen as a box above the keyboard that says "Everyone can reply." Tapping the box brings up three options to allow everyone to reply to the tweet, allow only people you follow to reply, or allow only people you mention to reply.

The "everyone" represents how Twitter traditionally works and it's the default setting that's selected for every tweet, while the other two options limit replies. Tweets that have limited replies are labeled and the reply icon is grayed out so it's clear to people that they're unable to reply.

Even when replies are limited to followers or people mentioned in a tweet, people unable to reply will be able to view, Retweet, Retweet with Comment, and like the tweets.

The feature should help cut down on online abuse and harassment, and it could also potentially be used to promote more focused discussions on the social platform with a select few users.

Update: Some users are reporting that the feature is not accessible to them, despite updating the Twitter app to the latest version, suggesting it is still rolling out.

Update 2: Twitter said that the release notes suggesting limited replies to tweets were available to everyone were incorrect. The feature has not rolled out to all users, and it still remains limited to a small number of Twitter users.

Update 3, August 11: As of August 11, the feature that lets Twitter users limit who can reply to their tweets is rolling out to everyone. It's available on Twitter for iOS, Twitter for Android, and Twitter on the web.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1293239745695211520

Article Link: Twitter iOS App Now Lets All Users Limit Who Can Reply to Their Tweets [Update: Now Available]

 

[nylonsteel]

good option to have

 

[siri_3005]

So they got time to put a feature like this out but not ban the Kpop stans spamming videos that aren't related to the hashtag at all?

 

[Chompineer]

Ah yes, that wont expand the echo chamber effect that Twitter already heavily experiences...

DONT AGREE WITH ME? CANT REPLY TO ME. ONLY MY OPINION IS RIGHT!

 

[newyorksole]

Ah yes, that wont expand the echo chamber effect that Twitter already heavily experiences...

DONT AGREE WITH ME? CANT REPLY TO ME. ONLY MY OPINION IS RIGHT!

Yeah but honestly, it doesn’t matter either way. People who tweet extreme (often times WRONG) things are not going to be swayed or change their views whether people reply or not.

They can still be mentioned and ReTweeted so there will still be people fighting them back.

 

[macmyworld]

Well this takes all the fun out of Twitter. The replies are better than the tweets!

 

[Wanted797]

Ah yes, that wont expand the echo chamber effect that Twitter already heavily experiences...

DONT AGREE WITH ME? CANT REPLY TO ME. ONLY MY OPINION IS RIGHT!

They are literally exacerbating
a serious issue. Imagine someone growing up with this. Heaven forbid they talk to someone in person someday who disagrees with them.

 

[decisions]

Really can’t help but think this is Twitter’s attempt to double down on their platform being against critical thinking, debate, and discussion in general. It’s more about feeding off the ego boost of of knowing that other people saw your opinion.

 

[TrenttonY]

This feature should not be allowed for accounts that are blue checked marked.

 

[and 1989 others]

Twitter, the social media site with a key goal of restricting how social you can be.

 

[Frantisekj]

One can understand that blocling some dumb ppl from messing your twitter feed can be nice but genrarlly it is just silence unwanted news sources and opinions. Hiding it under flag of fighting hate speach and fake news so "real" fake news can be happily spread undisturbed lol.

 

[C DM]

Ah yes, that wont expand the echo chamber effect that Twitter already heavily experiences...

DONT AGREE WITH ME? CANT REPLY TO ME. ONLY MY OPINION IS RIGHT!

Isn't this just the kind of thing that happens in real life as it is. We all talk to just a few friends sometimes or a group of coworkers, or something similarly more limited like that. Not everything that is said is necessarily meant for everyone, let alone for everyone to comment on.

It might be said that's not the nature of Twitter, and while that is the case for many, that's not really how everyone sees and uses it. Perhaps the tweak here (if that's not how it already works) is to not only limit replies, but to also limit the tweet itself so that it's only seen by those who can reply to it.

 

[roland.g]

social media apps and their prevalence and massive usage is just further proof that the meek morons have inherited the earth.

 

[826317]

If they are going to prohibit who can reply to these tweets, will they also prohibit people from seeing the tweet as well? If you want to play the silencing game on a massive public platform, you've got to play it fairly.

I have said it before and I will say it again: Speech is fought with more speech, not by limiting speech.

 

[C DM]

social media apps and their prevalence and massive usage is just further proof that the meek morons have inherited the earth.

People wanting to communicate easier and better with others that they know?

 

[roland.g]

People wanting to communicate easier and better with others that they know?

Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. are not about better communicating. If you believe that, you've highlighted my point.

 

[C DM]

Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. are not about better communicating. If you believe that, you've highlighted my point.

As the case with pretty much any tool, it mainly depends on the use.

 

[roland.g]

As the case with pretty much any tool, it mainly depends on the use.

Yep. All those cordless drills that lead to the decline of civilization. Hmm.

 

[lyngo]

As if the echo chamber of social media weren’t loud enough? This will only enhance it!

 

[C DM]

Yep. All those cordless drills that lead to the decline of civilization. Hmm.

And all those people sharing their baby pictures with their family and friends.

 

[compwiz1202]

Yeah but honestly, it doesn’t matter either way. People who tweet extreme (often times WRONG) things are not going to be swayed or change their views whether people reply or not.

They can still be mentioned and ReTweeted so there will still be people fighting them back.

I definitely agree you will never sway the OP, but dissenters could sway others on the fence. If all they allow are tweets in agreement, that will falsely sway those people.

 

[gbc204]

So they got time to put a feature like this out but not ban the Kpop stans spamming videos that aren't related to the hashtag at all?

Are you... complaining about Kpop fans hijacking white supremacist hashtags?

 

[CarlJ]

I’m thinking maybe twitter should permanently disable this feature for accounts of politicians who use their Twitter accounts to issue official edicts. If you want to dispense official policy through Twitter, your citizens should be able to reply.

 

[jclo]

For those who haven't been able to find this feature: Twitter says the release notes were a mistake and it's not actually out. I've updated the article.

 

[Saturn007]

Surprised that the article didn't mention the background of this decision.

Two years or so ago, Trump blocked users who disagreed with his tweets. They sued. Trump and Twitter lost.

“The appeals court upheld a lower court decision from last year that says the president conducts government business on his personal Twitter account, so all Americans must be able to access it.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling that President Trump cannot block critics from his Twitter account. The decision comes at a time when many government officials are using social media platforms to communicate with the public.”

Trump Can't Block Twitter Followers, Federal Appeals Court Rules

The appeals court upheld a lower court decision from last year that says the president conducts government business on his personal Twitter account, so all Americans must be able to access it.

www.npr.org

See also

Trump's Twitter blocking violates Constitution, appeals court rules | CNN Politics

An appeals court said Tuesday that President Donald Trump violated the First Amendment by blocking users on Twitter.

www.cnn.com

Trump Can't Block People On Twitter He Disagrees With, A Federal Appeals Court Ruled

Because Donald Trump uses his Twitter account for official purposes and creates a "public forum," he can't exclude people based on their views, the 2nd Circuit ruled.

www.buzzfeednews.com

Opening up blocking to all users could well be Jack Dorsey's and Twitter's way of appeasing Trump and getting around the federal Appeals Court decision.

Note: Including such information is NOT a political observation, but a statement of fact and a matter of journalistic integrity. It's important for readers to understand the context and history. To treat it as if it were merely a company's decision to help its users is to tell only part of the story (and possibly an untrue part at that), distorts what's going on, and even takes a corporate-political side!