In a move designed to reassure the people who made the #RIPTwitter hashtag trend around the world today, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has gone on a charm offensive in a tweetstorm.
He says “we never planned to reorder timelines next week.”
Hello Twitter! Regarding #RIPTwitter: I want you all to know we're always listening. We never planned to reorder timelines next week.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
If the ‘next week’ part caught your eye (maybe they’ll do it later?), Jack has more…
Twitter is live. Twitter is real-time. Twitter is about who & what you follow. And Twitter is here to stay! By becoming more Twitter-y.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
He references ‘while you were away’ as an example of non-real-time Twitter…
Look at "while you were away" at the top of your TL. Tweets you missed from people you follow. Pull to refresh to go back to real-time.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
And intriguingly adds…
Twitter can help make connections in real-time based on dynamic interests and topics, rather than a static social/friend graph. We get it.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
Whatever Twitter has planned, it’s not switching to an algorithmic timeline next week. That doesn’t mean it won’t include more algorithmic elements over time of course. That tweet above could be read in multiple ways, but Jack wants you to know that he ‘gets it.’
As I said in my earlier piece, “let’s see what Twitter actually does. Enjoy your weekend and enjoy Twitter for what it is now, not what it might become.”
Update: In case you were in any doubt that some form of algorithmic feed is being tested, The Verge has more details.
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