Author: Ruth Clark

Twitter was in the center of a story this weekend after some media reports claimed that the microblogging network, that prides itself on its real-time nature, is gearing up for a fundamental shift in the way its timeline is structured, eschewing the ‘most-recent’ top structure for a more Facebook-esque design which shows tweets depending on their relevance to the user.

According to the report, the timeline would now consist of two parts—at the top would be the “While You Were Away” section, where the new algorithm would pick and choose tweets based on their relevance, while the lower section would continue to be chronologically arranged.

This in itself is not new and Twitter has been testing this with a limited number of users since late last year. But late on Friday, after reports emerged that the change would now be applied more extensively, and starting as soon as next week, Twitter users outraged. the hashtag #RIPTwitter was trending through the weekend with many users questioning the need for Twitter to ape Facebook. – See more at: http://www.exchange4media.com/digital/jack-dorsey-responds-to-riptwitter–says-no-change-in-timeline_63285.html#sthash.5eaoPpfT.dpuf