Twitter To Ask Users If They Have Read The Article Before Retweeting

Twitter Inc. TWTR is rolling out a new feature to limit misinformation on its social media platform, it announced Wednesday.

What Happened

The Jack Dorsey-led company said it will show a prompt to users asking if they'd like to read an article before they retweet it if they haven't opened it on Twitter already.

"Sharing an article can spark conversation, so you may want to read it before you [tweet] it," Twitter noted.

The prompt is currently only visible on limited Android devices in the United States, and Twitter may later roll out the feature to the wider audience post-testing.

According to Twitter, it won't track the users' activity outside of Twitter, which would otherwise give privacy concerns. Nevertheless, this means that users who have read the article outside of Twitter will still see the prompt.

Twitter noted that the prompt will make a mere suggestion, and users can still choose to retweet the articles without opening them.

Why It Matters

The San Francisco-based company has taken a decisive stand opposite to that of rival Facebook Inc. when it comes to monitoring the content on its platform.

Twitter has been engulfed in controversy over labeling one of President Donald Trump's tweets as misinformation.

Trump signed an executive order targeting social media immunity from lawsuits related to third-party content. Twitter followed the move by restricting the president's tweet on George Floyd protestors as inciting violence.

The company had announced late last year a wider policy to label or even remove tweets that are judged to be harmful or misleading by its moderators.

Twitter Price Action

Twitter shares closed about 2.2% lower at $35.14 on Wednesday and traded another 1% lower at $34.79 in the after-hours session.