Facebook Testing 'Read First' Prompts To Make You Read Articles Before You Share Them

Social media giant Facebook has launched a new prompt that will urge users to read articles before sharing them on the platform. Facebook says that the pop-up comes as the company’s way to promote more informed sharing of news articles. If a user goes to share a news article link they haven’t opened, Facebook will show a prompt encouraging them to open it and read it, before sharing it with others. This is similar to the “read article first” prompt that was launched last year in order to help promote informed discussion on the platform.

The new feature on Facebook is meant to address the spread of misinformation and fake news, which has become a major issue for social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, especially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The prompt on Facebook, according to the image shared by the company, tells users that they are about to share an article without opening it, when they share a link without opening it. “Sharing articles without reading them may mean missing key facts,” the prompt says. It further gives users the option to “Open Article” or “Continue Sharing,” if they wish to go ahead without reading the article.

While Twitter has not revealed exactly how much the “read article first” prompt makes a difference, the company said that its prompts against offensive tweets prompted about 34 percent of people to revise their initial reply or decided not to send their reply at all. It further said that the prompts also resulted in 11 percent fewer offensive replies in the future.

Facebook’s new prompt is being tested across the platform, including on Android smartphones. The prompt may not be showing up for all users immediately, but it is expected to be rolled out in the coming days.

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