No matter how you think of X, you probably won't see it as a platform known for facilitating protocols. However, the company is clearly trying to change that and is in its early stages of the company, aiming to boost posts that are widely agreed to with website users.
The app will be described by X as an “experimental pilot” and will begin asking a small percentage of users what they think of specific posts in the schedule. The screenshots shared by X show that people can respond with a range of positive or negative opinions, such as “it makes meaningful points,” “it’s fun,” or “it’s not interested in me.” X will then use these responses to help it “develop an open source algorithm that effectively identifies posts people like from different perspectives.”
The concept is somewhat similar to community notes, which have tried to consider different perspectives when ranking fact checks. However, the new program is not about browsing fact-checking content, but rather promotes posts that may be liked.
X's article on testing shows that it has lofty goals. “This experimental new feature is designed to reveal ideas, insights and perspectives of bridge perspectives,” the company wrote. “It can make people aware of broad resonance. It can motivate people to share these ideas in the first place.”
But whether open source algorithms based on data that users like can actually achieve this. A Pew Research report shows that there is still a significant partisan divide on how users view X and experience. Overcoming this may be harder than adding some extra posts.
This article originally appeared on Engadget
