Meta’s Threads is pushing out another test that could address a major long-running complaint about the service. The company is experimenting with allowing users to set the non-algorithmic “following” feed as the default, Mark Zuckerberg shared in a post.
The change, according to Zuckerberg, will allow users to select any feed as their default, including the newly announced custom feeds. But longtime Threads users will likely be relieved to finally have the ability to make “following” their default view. Up until now, Meta has pushed users to its “for you” algorithmic feed, which has long been criticized for its problems with engagement bait and its uncanny ability to push a mix of bizarre posts from total strangers to the top of users’ feeds
As part of the test, Meta will also make the ability to change your feed “more visible” in the app. Zuckerberg didn’t share how many users would be part of the test or how long it might take for the feature to become official. “Interested to see how and if people use this,” he wrote.
The update is the latest in a series of changes Meta has pushed over the last couple of weeks as it has faced surging growth from rival Bluesky. Bluesky, which has seen an influx of new users since the election, defaults to a feed of content from accounts you follow and doesn’t have a centralized algorithmic feed, though it’s had custom feeds for more than a year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/threads-latest-test-will-finally-let-you-make-the-following-feed-the-default-180857332.html?src=rss
