Back in September Twitter announced it was testing a new feature which would allow users to hide replies they’d rather not see in conversations.

Billed as a way to help folks have greater control over the flow of a conversation, Twitter is now rolling the Hide Replies feature out to its users around the world.

“Currently, repliers can shift the topic or tone of a discussion and derail what you and your audience want to talk about. To give you more control over the conversations you start, we tested the option for you to hide replies to your Tweets. We learned that the feature is a useful new way to manage your conversations,” Twitter wrote in a blog.

The feature gives users the option to hide a tweet but others are still able to view the hidden tweet by tapping an icon.

During testing Twitter learned a few things. For instance, folks mostly hide replies they consider annoying or off-topic. However, a number of users feared hiding replies as folks can see the tweets that are hidden and the tweet author fears retaliation.

Those who have used the feature already will now also be asked whether they wish to block the author of the tweet they are hiding.

Twitter said that it is exploring more user controls such as this.

“We’re exploring more options around who can reply to or see specific conversations, and are testing engagement changes to see if these lead to healthier discussions. We’re committed to making sure people feel safe and comfortable talking on Twitter,” the firm wrote.

The Hide Replies feature is rolling out on iOS, Android, Twitter Lite and the Twitter website.

[Image – CC 0 Pixabay]