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Twitter engineering manager Mike Jahr said that "important" messages can now be more or less pinned to the top of your timeline, a design that is meant to make sure that you see the messages that matter most when you log in, The Washington Post writes. 

The newspaper highlights that the new timeline order can be turned off. Users interested in having a few recommended messages pulled out of their stream will be able to head into their Settings menu and choose an option that says, "Show me the best Tweets first." If you decide it is not showing you what you want, you can turn it off.

According to a company help page, Twitter chooses which messages should be reordered by looking at elements such as the "accounts you interact with most" and "Tweets you engage with." Messages will still be recent, Jahr said, and other messages will still appear under the pinned tweets in reverse chronological order.

Even if the feature is turned on, reloading the stream will let the user see new tweets in the normal reverse-chronological order. "At any point, just pull-to-refresh to see all new Tweets at the top in the live, up-to-the-second experience you already know and love," Jahr wrote as cited by the Washington Post.

According to Jahr's post, the feature has already prompted people who have tested it to "Retweet and Tweet more, creating more live commentary and conversations, which is great for everyone." The rollout of this feature comes as Twitter has been feeling pressure from investors and advertisers who would like to see the network be friendlier to new users who may find its fast-flowing streams overwhelming. Being able to get some grasp on what is or is not important could help make the site more accessible.

The company is also highlighting the new timeline's value to advertisers. In its advertising blog, the company emphasised that brands can use the "important message" feature to more effectively reach their account's followers. "Today, we're launching an improved timeline to help people see Tweets that are important to them — from their favourite athletes, musicians, politicians, or brands," The Washington Post cites the product marketing manager Eric Farkas as writing.

Jahr's post said the company will be turning the feature on for everyone in the "coming weeks."