The rumors were real. Twitter is considering adding the “I don't like” button , and its testing phase has already started for a limited number of iOS users. It is worth mentioning that its operation will not be the same as the already known “I like it”, as it will have a restriction that aims to avoid toxicity in the social network —because the one that currently exists is already enough—. The “I don't like” button, at least initially, will be limited to replies (replies) to tweets. Also, only the main tweet author can do it.
On the other hand, users who received a “I don't like” in their response, will not even be informed of the interaction . Basically, the Dislike will not be public and will only be available to the author of the tweet. So what is its usefulness? According to Twitter, with this feature they want to know what kind of responses are most relevant to those who published the source message. The data could be used, for example, to change the order in which replies are displayed.
“We are testing this to understand the types of responses that seem relevant to you in a conversation, so that we can work on ways to show more of them. Your downvotes are not public, while your upvotes will show as 'Like' “, they mentioned. The Twitter statement suggests, then, that possibly the “I don't like” button is just a tool for “internal” use that will not be available to the general public in the near future.
To be honest, if the “Dislike” information is kept private to the main tweet author, there is no point in integrating it . On the contrary, if the data is public, the environment of toxicity that currently exists on Twitter – and throughout the Internet – would increase exponentially. Maybe this test is just a simple anecdote and really benefits the way the answers are displayed. It is true that some are more relevant than others.
However, we wouldn't be surprised if Twitter decides to offer another completely unnecessary feature. A few days ago, those led by Jack Dorsey closed Fleets , their responses to Instagram stories. The reason? It is a proposal that nobody asked for and very few used. Meanwhile, most wait for functions that are necessary, being the option to edit tweets the most requested of all.
