Bluesky now lets you customize its main Discover feed using new controls

Bluesky now allows users to customize their main Discover feeds. The social network is rolling out an updated version of its app that lets users give feedback on its algorithmic feed to better personalize it using the “Show more like this” and “Show less like this” buttons. this » in the menu of a publication to choose. what content the algorithm surfaces.

The change will help Bluesky users create a timeline that takes into account their own preferences, not what the company thinks they should see. The feature is somewhat similar to X (formerly Twitter), which allows users to click a “Not interested in this post” option in its own For You feed.

The new feature joins an already robust set of controls for configuring your Bluesky experience.

Unlike centralized social media platforms, Bluesky allows users to broadcast their own personalized feeds for others to subscribe to. These feeds may have different themes or algorithms than Bluesky’s Discover feed, giving you more ways to find interesting content on the network.

In addition to this, the social network allows you to subscribe to several moderation services so you can decide what type of publications you want to see and which ones you prefer to remain hidden. Users can also create and manage their own independent moderation services using Bluesky’s tool, Ozone.

By putting such controls in the hands of its users, Bluesky is attempting to create a platform whose policies and rules are not decided by a handful of executives at the top, but in which users can create their own experience. Unfortunately, the decentralized alternative to Twitter/X has struggled in the past to determine where the limit should be in terms of what users should moderate and when they should intervene.

In its early days, Bluesky was repeatedly criticized for mishandling moderation issues, such as allowing usernames with racial slurs to pass through its filters.

Additionally, when Bluesky responded to the moderation request, it lost the support of its first backer, Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. In a recent interview, Dorsey explained why he resigned from the board, saying that when Bluesky started kicking people out of the service, he felt like the company was repeating Twitter’s mistakes.

“It is not a truly decentralized protocol. It’s another application,” he said of the decision.

Despite Dorsey’s concerns, Bluesky has continued to make more tools available to users, whether it’s designing your own feeds, algorithms, moderation services or, now, customizing the feed of discovery.

Meanwhile, while Bluesky’s app remains the largest server running its decentralized AT protocol, the company recently highlighted other ongoing efforts to build a broader network, including blogging platform whtwnd.com, also built on the AT protocol (or atproto for short). .

As of today, Bluesky has around 5.6 million users. The company recently announced that other major changes are on the way, including support for video, DMs, better personalized feeds and anti-harassment features, OAuth, and more.