X tests... centrism

Whatever your opinion of X, you probably don't think of it as a platform known for fostering agreement. The company is apparently trying to change that, though, and is in the early stages of an experiment that aims to boost posts that are widely agreeable to the site's users.

With a new test, described by X as an "experimental pilot," the app will begin asking a small subset of users what they think of a particular post in their timeline. A screenshot shared by X shows that people can respond with a range of positive or negative opinions, like "it makes a meaningful point," "it's funny" or "it doesn't interest me." X will then use those responses to help it "develop an open source algorithm that could effectively identify posts liked by people from different perspectives."

The concept is somewhat similar to Community Notes, which already attempts to take differing perspectives into account when ranking fact checks. The new program, though, isn't about surfacing fact-checked content but boosting posts that are likely to be, well, liked.

X's post about the test suggests it has lofty goals. "This experimental new feature seeks to uncover ideas, insights, and opinions that bridge perspectives," the company wrote. "It can bring awareness to what resonates broadly. It could motivate people to share those ideas in the first place."

Whether an open source algorithm based on data about users' likes can actually accomplish that, though, is unclear. A report published today by Pew Research shows that there is still a significant partisan divide in terms of how X is perceived and experienced by users. Overcoming that could be more difficult than boosting a few extra posts.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/x-tests-centrism-170939276.html?src=rss