In a series of tweets, tech reporter Taylor Lorenz posted photos of her Facebook feed revealing the option to “downvote” comments, alongside the Like and Reply buttons. Multiple different people have since stated observing the choice in their feeds.
Comparing the specialty to Reddit, where users can downvote or upvote content, Lorenz wrote: “Facebook is experimenting downvoting comments. Very Reddit tbh!”
The new piece does look similar to Reddit’s format and it caught the thought of Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian Sr., who tweeted in reply: “Sincerest form of flattery! Wish I’d trademarked it and ‘upvote’ when I came up with it.”
A downvote or dislike button has long been a rumored next step for Facebook, but till now the social media platform has often stuck with the positive-only thumbs-up button.
In 2015, Facebook Design Chief Julie Zhuo said she had learned users complain about only owning the ability to “like” a comment. CEO Mark Zuckerberg also said in 2015 the company was operating on a downvote button at the time.
“One of the concerns we’ve heard people tell us over and over again is they want a ‘Dislike’ button because not everything is likable content,” Zhuo said at Fusion’s Real Fortune Fair in 2015. That same year, Facebook founded emoji “reactions,” which is positioned as a cooperative alternative to the dislike button.
But it appears the point is real despite some thinking the pictures were fake.
However, people are previously questioning whether adding a downvote button is a good idea.
Responding to the initial post, one person wrote: “I was just considering that Facebook needed more negativity.”
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