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Is there a reason to show the user that a message was deleted, rather than just remove the message? What benefit does this provide the user over simply hiding it?

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The placeholder for a deleted message helps the user in a few ways.

Serves as an indicator that the conversation has been altered.

Alice: Have you ever stolen from the company?
Alice: Just kidding! You've filled out those TPS reports, right? Could you help me?
Bob: Oh yeah, so many times! Come by my office around 2 and I'll show you how I do it.

If Alice deletes her second message without a trace, Bob has a bit of explaining to do. Bob has a much easier time defending himself if there's a This message was deleted in place of Alice's message.

Informs the user that the message they may be looking for might have been deleted.

A user trying to find a previous comment could grow frustrated knowing that they read a message in the conversation, but are now unable to find it. Showing that a message was once there but is no longer available can eliminate some of the searching and re-searching a user might do otherwise.

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