Twitter has begun internal testing of an Edit Tweet feature which will soon be expanded to some users of its Twitter Blue subscription service, the social media platform confirmed.
The company revealed early this year that it was working on a tool to allow users to edit tweets after they are posted, which is “our most requested feature to date”.
The firm said tweets will be able to be edited “a few times” in a 30-minute window immediately after they are published, and edited tweets will appear with an icon, timestamp and label to make it clear the original post has been modified.
Users will be able to click to see a tweet’s edit history, which will show past versions.
Twitter said labelling tweets and giving access to a post’s history is important because “they help protect the integrity of the conversation and create a publicly accessible record of what was said”.
In a blog post, the social media company said the feature would remain in a testing phase, with only a few users, for some time while it analyses how it is used.
Some critics have warned it could be exploited by bad actors seeking to spread disinformation.
“Like any new feature, we’re intentionally testing Edit Tweet with a smaller group to help us incorporate feedback while identifying and resolving potential issues. This includes how people might misuse the feature. You can never be too careful,” Twitter said in its blog post.
“Later this month, we’ll be expanding Edit Tweet access to Twitter Blue subscribers.
“As part of their subscription, they receive early access to features and help us test them before they come to Twitter. The test will be localised to a single country at first and expand as we learn and observe how people use Edit Tweet.
“We’ll also be paying close attention to how the feature impacts the way people read, write and engage with tweets.”
Twitter Blue, available in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, is a monthly subscription service that gives users additional features not available to the wider public.
