Twitter's temporary tweak of retweet function causes confusion | #TheCube

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File photo Copyright Amr Alfiky/Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Copyright Amr Alfiky/Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
By Seana Davis
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Twitter has changed the way you retweet in the lead-up to #USElection2020. But some people have been confused about the change.

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With the US election under a fortnight away, Twitter has released two features aimed at curbing the spread of misinformation on the platform.

But the changes to retweeting have caused confusion for some. 

Previously, users were given two options: to share directly to their feeds or to share with a comment.

Now when clicking the retweet button now, users are brought directly to a page that urges a "quote tweet", meaning they are encouraged to tweet with a comment.

You can still retweet with no comment, however, by simply clicking the retweet button and it will be shared on the platform as normal.

Users had been concerned that the change, which has temporarily been put in place ahead of the US elections, meant that only "quote tweets" could be shared.

Some users in Nigeria, where protests are ongoing against police brutality, had tweeted to say that the retweet function was no longer working amid the confusion.

People in Nigeria and across the globe have been tweeting using the hashtag #EndSARS to call for an end to police brutality in the country.

The change is temporary, Twitter said in a statement and aimed at trying to urge people to think more cautiously before sharing content online that could be misleading or misinformation.

In addition, Twitter is prompting users to read articles before they retweet, in an effort to ensure users are aware of the contents of articles before they publish on the platform.

Click on the player above as Seana Davis in #TheCube details more.

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