Mastodon, an open-source platform comparable to Twitter, has introduced a new feature designed to enhance user engagement for those utilizing the app to follow news and updates from writers and journalists. Starting this Tuesday, our platform will begin featuring clickable bylines for writers on hyperlink posts, which may redirect Mastodon users to the author’s account on the social media site, enabling active journalists to gain increased exposure and expand their following.
The innovative bylines in these links depart from conventional @username tags typically found on social media platforms and news outlets, instead adopting a more sophisticated format akin to those used for linking external written content, such as blog posts on WordPress or articles on Substack. When acting as an alternative, the transformation will feature the information publication’s headline and image used by another reference, accompanied by the author’s profile picture and title beneath.
As announced, the feature is now being rolled out to select information providers, including The Verge, MacStories, and MacRumors. It’s already waiting in the queue at TechCrunch, we’re informed!
To post these new bylines, you’ll need to access the main Mastodon server through either your web browser or the official mobile app until further notice. When interacting with another Mastodon server, you may benefit from linking to the latest nightly release, but this feature is only available for approved domains by moderators.
The corporation notes that its newly introduced bylines can be bolstered by its Application Programming Interface (API), thereby enabling third-party applications to facilitate seamless integration and future growth.
On its heels, the innovation driving this feature is a novel type of OpenGraph tag, according to Mastodon. Here are the metadata tags you’d typically include on your website to determine which thumbnail image appears alongside the page preview when shared to platforms like Mastodon, iMessage, Discord, and more:
This tag appears like this: ‘<meta title=”fediverse:creator” content material=”@Gargron@mastodon.social” />’. With minimal coding effort, it can be seamlessly integrated into a website, simplifying the process even further.
The agreement within the tag may also verify compatibility with any Fediverse account, rather than just limiting it to Mastodon specifically. The platform allows for seamless integration with various social media platforms, enabling users to share content with accounts on Flipboard, Threads, WordPress (utilizing the ActivityPub plugin), PeerTube, Pixelfed, and other compatible networks. Mastodon claims that its platform can function effectively without requiring users to log in through a mainstream social media account like @.
While this one caveat does not necessarily assist in situations involving multiple authors and co-byline arrangements, it does specify that only the lead author will be responsible for presenting their work. While that’s an important consideration, it remains to be seen how feasible such a solution will be in the near term.
Mastodon plans to propose a specification draft for various ActivityPub platforms in the near future.
The introduction of this tag may likely incentivize more journalists to leverage the federated social platform, thereby facilitating greater exposure and potential media coverage. While Mastodon’s user base, excluding Threads with its 170 million monthly users, is substantial, it remains uncertain if these figures account for the entire decentralized network. Mastodon, particularly, has round .
