Facebook started trialing Reddit-style upvote and downvote buttons on comments back in February. While the feature is still not rolling out globally, more and more users are reporting having access to it.
Maybe it is a coincidence, but the timing could not be better for Facebook. After months of controversy around its approach to fake news, Facebook is apparently extending its test of upvote/downvote buttons to more users.
The feature was first spotted in February this year, but now it seems the feature is rolling out to a larger number of users.
Hmmmm. Not sure I like the Upvote and Downvote feature of Facebook. Time will tell I guess. pic.twitter.com/hxvjW7HaTX
— iambenslater (@iambenslater) April 29, 2018
Ever since Facebook, it has always been looking into ways to let users prioritize what they see on their timelines. Algorithms might be a marketer’s worst nightmare when it comes to organic reach, but they have proved to be a great tool to serve users with content they are most likely to want to interact with.
Now, Facebook is giving users even greater control over content – and especially comments – by allowing them to “score” each comment, upvoting what they find most useful, and downvoting what they least agree with. The feature seems inspired by Reddit, obviously. However, Facebook could also see it as one more tool to fight fake news and online harassment. Comments that are downvoted en masse could direct Facebook to review them, without the need for users to report them.
In any case, the test still seems to be restricted to a few users worldwide. Facebook has not commented on a potential global rollout as of yet.
Do you think this is a good feature? Can it be enough or do we still need a real dislike button?
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