Twitter Changes its Timeline and Users Revolt

Much has been said this week about Twitter’s most recent changes to its timeline, and like in many instances when social media companies make changes to their products, users aren’t thrilled. If you haven’t heard, Twitter is now adding tweets to timelines from accounts users haven’t chosen to follow.

Here’s what Twitter had to say about it in its support document on its website:

When we identify a Tweet, an account to follow, or other content that’s popular or relevant, we may add it to your timeline. This means you will sometimes see Tweets from accounts you don’t follow. We select each Tweet using a variety of signals, including how popular it is and how people in your network are interacting with it. Our goal is to make your home timeline even more relevant and interesting.

Right now, no one really knows exactly what content will be shared but Twitter seems to be treating favorites, mostly by people users follow or by popular tweets that a user they follow follows, more like retweets.  Currently, there is no way to opt out.

While some of the arguments against these changes are valid as Christina Warren from Mashable points out, I think it may be beneficial for those in communications for a few reasons. First, it will potentially filter in breaking news that might be interesting for our clients, as we often find out things we wouldn’t have been exposed to through retweets. This may just expand that universe. Second, it will expose us to a new group of users to follow and potentially engage with.

I know I may be among the minority here, but with so many social platforms to cultivate for clients on a daily basis, I appreciate the extra assistance in finding topics and people that may be interesting to me or my clients.

Here’s a short Storify with some thoughts about the changes