Twitter; A Broadcasting Tool for Instant Gratification?

The Many Uses of Twitter

Twitter has evolved from its beginning days where the main use was following celebrities or tweeting inane, hum-drum activities that were the lives of normal people hoping others found their tweets sarcastic or intriguing on some level. These days Twitter has become a tool for reporting events almost instantly after they occur, sharing political, social, or ethical opinions, and is the new vehicle that many reporters use to alert the public about events. For example, CNN is known for uploading video clips or sound bites pertaining to breaking news issues and more recently, commentating about the presidential race. Another large development that was recently formed in the Twitter world is the use of meme’s and troll accounts that post cynical, sarcastic, and posts that downright poke fun at famous people and political figures. Twitter is has also recently developed a rep for marketing; scrolling through your timeline, as a user you are subjected to promotional posts from businesses which post links to websites or pictures that direct you to a shopping site. In the article from AboutTech.com, Twitter is discussed as a new tool for marketing that is refreshing to people who are sick and tired of television advertisement, due to the ease of being able to reject the advertising at will should they wish.

Convenient Communication

Twitter is made all too easy for literally anyone wishing to communicate a message, from a simple bystander walking city streets to the highest ranking journalist in a remote corner of the world. In seconds, information about an event or disaster is made available to the entire world of Twitter, making it handier than TV broadcasts or text message alerts. Also, Twitter has become a great tool for organizations to promote their causes, give the public information on events they are working on, or correct errors that may have been given through various media coverage. In terms of politics, Twitter is an invaluable tool for politicians running campaigns because it allows them access to the public and constant communication to influence and keep two-way communication flowing with their supporters.

Events Exposed Through Twitter

Many tragic events and disasters have run their course throughout the Twitter world over the past twelve months; the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting, the Syrian refugee movement, and the Black Lives Matter movement to name a few. The Sandy Hook shooting began with short messages of a shooting that took place at an elementary school, and quickly evolved into live news feeds being filmed by helicopters of news organizations, and minute by minute updates with pictures of children and teachers being evacuated from the scene. With the Sandy Hook shooting, speculations were being made by eyewitnesses on the scene, reporters, and people who weren’t even present which developed large rumors of the cause of the shooting, who the shooter was, and what was really happening. In this instance, Twitter did more damage by creating rumors and placing false facts in the minds of the public because the ability to share information instantaneously was too available to scared and anxious people. The Syrian refugee movement has been largely documented on Twitter by journalists and volunteer organizations, aiming at the desperation and sadness of the displacement. Pictures and videos are streamed to Twitter showing families being torn apart by death, sickness, and violence while trying to flee their country. Twitter has been used as a means to expose the tragedy and struggle the people of Syria are experiencing because many living in the Western world are not aware of what is happening outside of the borders of America. Lastly, the Black Lives Matter movement has created what could easily be called a revolution on Twitter, with many people voicing their opinions on the issue that has become rampant in the streets of the United States. Videos of police brutality, both against and by the police, protests live from streets of cities in turmoil, and opinion pieces from politicians and police officials are posted. All of these tragic events have been discussed by millions of people to the point of overkill, many events like this now contain an overload of speculation and dramatization because really, anyone can post something without needing it to be fact checked or approved by anyone.

My Twitter Experience

For my Twitter project I chose to follow Ellen DeGeneres, MTV music, and the UN Environment organization because I wanted to have a variety of subjects to comment on that were very unrelated to each other and covered different topics. Admittedly, I chose to follow Ellen because she is one of my favorite people on the planet not only being funny but extremely heart-warming and giving.

This project was much different from any blogging experience I have had because I was forced to post thoughtful and intriguing posts with only 140 characters to do so. Also, I had to think of clever hash tags and include pictures and video that coincided with what I was discussing. Secondly, I had to respond to my classmate’s posts, which forced me to understand their topics and make use of the information they were posting. With social media, I am more of a scanner than a responder; if I see something that fires me up or I feel I need to comment on I will, but it is a rarity so this project really got me out of my comfort zone. This project was extremely beneficial in my eyes because it allowed me to get to know my classmates on a better level through their choice of topics and followers, since it was an online class and can be a bit isolating. Many online classes do not give their students an opportunity such as this to feel a bit more connected with their online peers. Also, this project taught me that I do have a voice and what I comment on is seen by many people; where before I felt I was just one of a few million tweeters lost in the sea of thousands of comments and opinionated tweets.