By Barbara Ortutay, AP Technology Writer
Twitter is disappearing its disappearing tweets, called fleets, after they didn't catch on.
The company began testing tweets that vanish after 24 hours last March in Brazil. Fleets were designed to allay the concerns of new users who might be turned off by the public and permanent nature of normal tweets.
"However, we haven't seen an increase in the amount of new people joining the conversation with Fleets like we hoped," Twitter said in a statement Wednesday. "So as of August 3, Fleets will no longer be available on Twitter."
Kayvon Beykpour, head of consumer product at Twitter, stressed that this is part of how the company works.
"(Big) bets are risky and speculative, so by definition a number of them won't work," he tweeted. "If we're not having to wind down features every once in a while, then it would be a sign that we're not taking big enough swings."
Fleets are reminiscent of Instagram and Facebook "stories" and Snapchat's snaps, which let users post short-lived photos and messages. Such features are increasingly popular with social media users looking for smaller groups and and more private chats. But people use Twitter differently than Facebook, Instagram or messaging apps — it's more of a public conversation and a way to stay up to date with what's going on. Fleets, it turns out, did not make sense.
There was also a matter of the name. Called fleets because they were fleeting, the word is also a brand name for an enema — something many people pointed out on Twitter when the feature launched.
In a tweet announcing the decision, Twitter wrote "we're sorry or you're welcome," tacitly acknowledging mixed user reactions to the feature.
Civil rights groups call on major corporations to stick with DEI programs
A broad group of civil rights organizations called on the CEOs and board members of major companies Thursday to maintain their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that have come under attack online and in lawsuits.
An open letter signed by 19 organizations and directed at the leaders of Fortune 1000 companies said companies that abandon their DEI programs are shirking their fiduciary responsibility to employees, consumers and shareholders.
The civil rights groups included the NAACP, the National Organization for Women, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
"Diversity, equity and inclusion programs, policies, and practices make business-sense and they're broadly popular among the public, consumers, and employees," their statement read. "But a small, well-funded, and extreme group of right-wing activists is attempting to pressure companies into abandoning their DEI programs."
Companies such as Ford, Lowes, John Deere, Molson Coors and Harley-Davidson recently announced they would pull back on their diversity, equity and inclusion policies after facing pressure from conservative activists who were emboldened by recent victories in the courtroom.
Many major corporations have been examining their diversity programs in the wake of a Supreme Court decision last year that declared race-based affirmative action programs in college admissions unconstitutional. Dozens of cases have been filed making similar arguments about employers. Critics of DEI programs say the initiatives provide benefits to people of one race or sexual orientation while excluding others.
In their letter, the civil rights organizations, which also included... Read More