Facebook has copied yet another feature from Twitter

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.

The social media giants have a problem. Okay, multiple problems but one of the most egregious is people sharing content without reading it, because the headline sounds like something they agree with. Facebook is now testing out a prompt that knows if you’re trying to share an article you’ve not read and asks you to go read it.

It’s essentially the same feature that Twitter rolled out last year, which calls you out if you’ve not opened a link before sharing it. That’s a good thing, as it might deter some posters from sharing everything they see without reading.

The new prompt on Facebook will remind you that you probably should go read that article before you share it. Let’s face it, clickbaity headlines are everywhere and you might get caught sharing something that doesn’t resemble the headline snippet.

The feature has a good probability of working before you start saying “but it’s just one more tap to share.” When Twitter had their version under testing, they found that articles were opened 40-percent more after seeing the prompt, and that some people didn’t even share the article after the prompt.

Anything that slows the spread of disinformation on social media should be welcomed, and the only question I have for Facebook is “Why did this take so long?”

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• A coalition of Attorneys General have asked Facebook to stop pestering kids
• Instagram now lets you mute audio and video on Instagram Live
• Twitter is rolling out its Tip Jar feature so you can pay people for their crappy tweets
• The MyPillow guy supposedly stuffed a million dollars into his failed social media site

Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.