Blur Text on Threads to Conceal Spoilers: A Step-by-Step Guide

The digital landscape is increasingly saturated with spoilers, especially following the release of new films and TV series. To assist users in avoiding unintentional reveals, Threads, Instagram’s alternative to Twitter, has introduced a feature that enables users to blur or conceal text within their posts.

Leveraging Threads’ Spoiler-Blocking Feature

The concept of spam-blocking features is not new in social media; platforms like Reddit and Bluesky have implemented similar options. Now, Threads has joined this trend, enhancing user experience by allowing text to be obscured.

Before you explore this functionality, ensure that your Threads application is updated to the latest version. Simply head to the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, search for Threads, and tap the Update button if available.

To initiate a new post, open the Threads app and tap on the What’s new section located at the top, or click the + icon at the bottom of the screen.

Start typing your text. To hide specific content, long-press the desired text and drag your finger to select it. A pop-up menu will appear, from which you should choose Mark spoiler.

Your selected text will now display with a semi-transparent gray background, indicating it is hidden from view. If you wish to amend your selection, tap the text again and choose Unmark spoiler.

This spoiler feature can also be applied to media such as photos, videos, or GIFs. To include media, click the photo or GIF icons located beneath the What’s new section.

Adding media to new post in Threads app.

Once your media is selected, tap the three dots above the media (in this case, an image) and choose Mark as spoiler.

This will cause the image to appear blurred to viewers.

If you prefer to use Threads on your PC, you can still take advantage of the blurring feature. Navigate to Threads in your web browser and click on the What’s new section.

Add your topic in the Add topic field. Compose your text, click the beginning of the word to select it, and highlight the text you want to hide. The Mark as spoiler option will appear above, allowing you to select it. Your text will then show a subtle gray background indicating it is concealed.

Marking text as spoiler in new post on Thread on PC.

When adding media from your PC, first upload your photo, video, or GIF. After that, click on the three dots on your image and select Mark as spoiler to complete the process.

Viewing Blurred Spoilers on Threads

It’s essential to remember that to effectively utilize the spoiler feature on Threads, you must be logged into your account while browsing the app. Failing to do so may expose you to all spoilers, as content will not be blurred for users who are not logged in.

When a post contains blurred text, it appears similar to particle dust—an effect akin to that found in the Messages app on iPhone. Here’s a visual representation of what a post looks like when marked as a spoiler:

Text that is marked as spoiler in Threads post on the app.

On PC, blurred text is presented under a gray bar, echoing the style seen on Reddit.

Hidden text view on Threads app from PC.

For media content, Threads adds a small Spoilers warning to the image, video, or GIF.

Spoiler tag visible on media in Threads post.

To view the content, simply click or tap on it.

This innovative feature sets Threads apart from Instagram, which currently lacks a straightforward method for blurring text related to spoilers. While sharing Threads posts to Instagram is user-friendly, the blurring effect unfortunately does not transfer over.

Is It Possible to Unblur Content on Threads?

If you reconsider a blurred text within an earlier post, unfortunately, you cannot revert this action once content is marked as a spoiler.

However, you do have the option to delete the post entirely and recreate it without any spoiler alerts. Alternatively, if it’s a simple text post, you can simply edit it. To do this, open the specific post, click on the three dots in the upper right corner, and select Edit.

Revise your text, mark the necessary portions as spoilers, and then hit the Post button.

The newly posted text will then be hidden from view, allowing for a more controlled sharing experience.

Viewing edited text post in Threads app.

If you prefer exploring Instagram, check out our guide on how to create quick travel itineraries directly through the platform. Alternatively, you can learn to repost content you enjoy on Instagram.

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