If you have used Twitter at any point recently, you would probably know that a pretty big part of the platform has to do with bots. Now, most of the time when you see a bot it’s going to be more or less harmless, mostly some kind of an account that has been made in jest without any serious implications on the world at large.
However, the fact of the matter is that bots are often used for some pretty malicious purposes, with one of the most important reasons that bots are used often having to do with political discussions. One can imagine just how serious of an impact bots can end up having on the various political discussions that are occurring on Twitter and how they can be used to curtail free speech as well as shift the narrative in a particular direction.
It seems like Twitter is taking note of the prevalence of bots on the platform, and according to an executive by the name of Vijaya Gadde, Twitter might be considering using some kind of a checkmark that would be used to identify bots.
This checkmark would ostensibly be somewhat similar to what we see with verified accounts although it will probably be different in color and design to allow people to differentiate between the two. The Gadde did not confirm that checkmarks would be used but did say that Twitter had considered it and that more transparency was required in order to make the conversations that are had on Twitter as reasonable as they can possibly be.
This will definitely be a step in the right direction from the platform since it will allow Twitter users to better understand who they are retweeting and whose opinions they are taking seriously, enabling them to better educate themselves on the issues that are being discussed at any given point in time.
Photo: AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Read next: Twitter finally comes with a ‘dark mode’ on Android
However, the fact of the matter is that bots are often used for some pretty malicious purposes, with one of the most important reasons that bots are used often having to do with political discussions. One can imagine just how serious of an impact bots can end up having on the various political discussions that are occurring on Twitter and how they can be used to curtail free speech as well as shift the narrative in a particular direction.
It seems like Twitter is taking note of the prevalence of bots on the platform, and according to an executive by the name of Vijaya Gadde, Twitter might be considering using some kind of a checkmark that would be used to identify bots.
This checkmark would ostensibly be somewhat similar to what we see with verified accounts although it will probably be different in color and design to allow people to differentiate between the two. The Gadde did not confirm that checkmarks would be used but did say that Twitter had considered it and that more transparency was required in order to make the conversations that are had on Twitter as reasonable as they can possibly be.
This will definitely be a step in the right direction from the platform since it will allow Twitter users to better understand who they are retweeting and whose opinions they are taking seriously, enabling them to better educate themselves on the issues that are being discussed at any given point in time.
Photo: AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Read next: Twitter finally comes with a ‘dark mode’ on Android
