Threads Needs to Improve Trending Topics and Real-Time Conversation Engagement, Says Instagram Chief
If Threads wants to become a true competitor for Twitter/X, then it needs to put more focus on trending topics, and make it easier for people to engage in real-time conversation around big events. This has been one of the major criticisms of Threads as it stands, with many Threads users still referring to X for the latest updates on sports, world events, celebrity content, etc.
Threads doesn’t have a Trending Topics display, and it’s only just started testing out topic tags in selected regions. There’s also no way to sort search results in the app chronologically, which, in combination, makes it very difficult to keep up with evolving news stories as they happen in-stream. And over the weekend, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri provided some more insight into why the Threads team isn’t overly interested in enabling this, at least as we know it, just yet.
Mosseri explained that having a comprehensive list of every post with a specific word in chronological order would lead to spammers and bad actors flooding the view with content by adding relevant words or tags. This is a common issue on X, where spammers add trending hashtags to their spam posts to reach more people in popular streams. Threads limits the use of topic tags to one per post to avoid becoming a spam vector and flooding key conversation surfaces with junk.
Mosseri acknowledged that Threads could try to limit misuse by removing more spam content from trending results, but it’s not an easy task. He stated that search products need some ranking to avoid being overrun with bad actors and bots. While it’s possible to show results in chronological order, it becomes necessary to omit bad content that doesn’t quite cross the line to be taken down. Mosseri added that there are many posts that most would consider junk but don’t warrant removal, making it difficult to give real-time focus to discovery without imposing unfair restrictions.
Mosseri’s comments highlight the Threads team’s revised approach to content ranking, which is part of Meta’s broader effort to make Threads a more positive experience than Twitter and X. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has previously expressed his ambition to adapt Threads into a billion-user app that fosters positive conversations. While this approach may be frustrating for those seeking a straight Twitter alternative, it could enable Meta to build a healthier and more engaging real-time conversational experience.
Although Threads currently lacks real-time immediacy and the ability to identify top discussion topics, Mosseri mentioned that the team is still iterating on this and exploring ways to facilitate real-time engagement. One possibility is ranking posts based on different parameters. Another option could be highlighting top stories from reputable news outlets, although this poses risks regarding reach and engagement promises to news outlets in the app. Threads might also consider ranking each profile in the app based on trust and newsworthiness related to specific topics, which would require learning more about what each user shares in the app.
While there are no easy answers, it’s interesting to see the Threads team addressing these challenges as they seek to differentiate from Twitter while staying largely the same. If Threads can successfully address these issues, it could be a significant step towards improving online engagement. With the insight and data at their disposal, Meta is in a good position to achieve this goal.