Twitter's Flock Feature Allows You to Share Tweets to Selected Users

Sophie Webster, Tech Times 25 January 2022, 10:01 am

Twitter is currently working on a feature that will give users a way to share tweets that can only be seen by their selected friends.

In July 2020, the social media company revealed that it is considering letting users be designated "trusted friends" so some tweets would only be visible.

The feature is similar to the Close Friends feature on Instagram, letting users select friends to share their Instagram stories with.

Twitter's Flock Feature

Alessandro Paluzzi, a developer and reverse engineer was able to get evidence that the feature is currently in development and that Twitter calls it Flock.

However, if the feature gets officially released, it might be called differently. Twitter told The Verge that Flock is a placeholder name.

Paluzzi stated that the current iteration will allow users to add up to 150 followers to their list and that they will be the only ones who can view and respond to the tweets sent to the group.

Also Read: Twitter Video Subtitles to Automatically Play When Clips are Muted, Rolls Out for Android and iOS

Any tweet sent to Flock will have a notice attached, telling the user's close friends that they can see it because they've been added to the group. The group can be edited anytime, and Twitter said that people wouldn't be notified if they were removed.

When the social media company first revealed that it is considering adding a trusted friends feature, it also presented another concept that would allow users to take on different personas within one account.

However, it is not clear if the social media company stopped working on that version of the feature. Twitter is also testing a feature called Communities that allows users to create a dedicated space for users with similar interests.

Flock, on the other hand, was created with the user's real friends in mind, just like Instagram's Close Friends feature, according to MacRumors.

In a statement posted by TechCrunch, Twitter said that it is always working on new ways to help users engage in healthy and positive conversations, and it is currently looking for ways to let users share tweets privately.

Twitter Pictures and Videos

Twitter is obviously adding features that can already be seen on other social media sites like Instagram and TikTok.

Last month, Twitter announced that it is working on a feature called "Quote Tweet with Reaction" where users can embed a copy of a tweet into a picture or video instead of only replying to it with text.

The social media company said that the feature is being tested on iOS. You will see a "Quote Tweet with Reaction" button on the retweet menu.

When you use the feature, you will be taken to a screen to take a picture or video to put the tweet on top of your camera roll.

Some users have expressed concern that these reaction quote tweets could be a vector for harassment. Although it is easy for the platform to moderate the quote tweets, it is more difficult to scan the contents of a picture or video.

Some of Twitter's other features include limiting who can reply to your tweets, or opting out of photo tagging.