After rolling out the ability to snooze keywords to a number of users earlier this year, Facebook is now testing a new ‘Ban these Words’ feature allowing users to block comments containing certain words.
Earlier this year, Facebook rolled out a feature that allows users to snooze specific keywords, in order to declutter their feeds. The feature was only made available to a portion of users in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, but from this sample, Facebook was able to determine patterns of usage and actual insight on how people were using the feature.
Now, according to feature-spotter Jane Manchun Wong, Facebook seems to be testing a new feature that allows users to control what content appears on their profiles.
Facebook is working on letting users to ban words/phrases/emojis from showing up on their personal timelines
Tip @Techmeme pic.twitter.com/9WpfDXEEu7
— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) November 27, 2018
The new keyword blocking feature effectively bans comments that contain specific “words, phrases, or emojis” that users don’t want to appear in comments on their timeline. The comments would still be visible to the users who posted them and their friends. Essentially, Facebook is testing a way to hide comments automatically.
For users who face harassment, the new feature could be a godsend, especially for those who are very public. Facebook Page admins can already block certain keywords from showing up in comments, and users can already mute keywords for a specific time period, but the new feature takes a step forward, allowing users better control.
Facebook hasn’t commented on this feature yet but based on previous examples, I’d imagine it will be available within the next few months or so.
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