SarahNov 13, 2022
I know some people making the #TwitterMigration may be missing the quote tweet option, but @Gargron explained the reasoning behind not having it quite well. I was just thinking about this because I saw someone on the other site tweet a very bad take and he got QTed, which led to some piling on. If he hadn’t been QTed, many wouldn’t have seen it. Here I find it a bit easier to just pass that stuff by or not see it at all. Definitely a less reflexive anger-inducing experience
Show threadKristoffer LawsonNov 13, 2022
@SarahOestreich @Gargron isn’t a bit ironic that you pass this on essentially via a quote, just an image one. It actually shows why quoting is useful: to be able to add why you are sharing something. Or maybe to clarify a point (like I might want to share something controversial yet topical, and point out I don’t agree)
Show threadSarahNov 13, 2022
@Setok I addressed this in another comment below but I guess I can repeat myself. I think you make a fair point (I couldn’t find the original and would have boosted it if I could find it again) and do think that sharing something and adding context is useful, but there is also a really harmful side to QTing. My first day here I was called slurs and I do believe it would have gotten worse with a QT option https://mstdn.social/@SarahOestreich/109327363969208379
Sarah (@[email protected])

Okay Mastodon is very nice and people are rightfully relieved that it seems like a friendlier place, but some of you who made the #TwitterMigration need to take off those rose-colored glasses just a bit. The decentralization does seem to make it a bit safer, but I was also called a k*ke on my first day here and also told “work will set you free,” which was above the entrance to Auschwitz. It didn’t turn me off from Mastodon but people shouldn’t think abuse can’t happen here

Mastodon 🐘
Show threadKristoffer LawsonNov 13, 2022
@SarahOestreich that of course sucks. Abuse always raises its head on online communities. But it’s handing it to them if useful features get removed because of it. Are there studies showing quoting increases abuse? I mean it can happen even without a quoting feature, by quoting a screen cap. You’re just less aware of it.
Show threadSarah
@Setok I agree there will always be workarounds but they do take a tad more effort I guess. I do think that QTing allows some of the worst opinions to be amplified (even if the point is to dunk on them it still spreads them) and encourages us to also indulge some of our worst impulses, and if this helps mitigate that even a little, I’m for it. But I’m still relatively new here so I may change my mind! We shall see.
Nov 13, 2022 at 4:01pmWeb
Show threadKristoffer LawsonNov 13, 2022
@SarahOestreich yeah, I’ve been missing the feature already. Just helps sometimes to give context to something I’m boosting. Never even occurred to me to use it for abuse…
Show threadSarahNov 13, 2022
@Setok I totally understand and do miss it a bit as well bc what if I see a post and want to add my opinion, start a discussion about it with my followers? Here I can’t do that. But I see so much dunking via QT which can be useful in repudiating bad/harmful ideas, but also puts some bad stuff in one’s feed that one might otherwise not see. And it’s good you hadn’t thought of it! Unfortunately, it happens quite a bit. Time will tell if this adds to or hampers the experience