Twitter’s ‘Birdwatch’ Feature Will Fight Misinformation Through Crowd Sourced Information

Twitter is working on a new tool to counter misinformation. The new tool, currently dubbed as ‘Birdwatch,’ will let Twitter users warn each other about misleading tweets that could cause harm by flagging the tweet and adding notes. ‘Birdwatch’ lets users flag tweets, and add notes to provide more context. It also requires users to fill a survey form where the user elaborates whether a tweet is misleading. The feature was first spotted by tipster Jane Manchun Wong, who digs in to app codes to find new and unreleased features. Wong had first discovered the ‘Birdwatch’ feature back in early August.

In a tweet last week, Wong further elaborated the ‘Birdwatch’ feature. On Saturday, October 3, Wong demonstrated how a “Twitter Community” form was generated when a tweet is added to ‘Birdwatch’. The form shared by Wong asks users to elaborate on a misleading tweet. Wong’s findings were acknowledged by Twitter, as the company’s Product Lead Kayvon Beykpour responded to her tweet saying that he will share more about the ‘Birdwatch’ feature soon. “I suppose this is a good time to offer a reminder that we’ve love the opportunity to work with you,” Beykpour said.