Twitter: Reach and Time

Twitter is a vast social media website that allows for both social connection and information disbursement to happen simultaneously. Like most other social media websites, Twitter has a backend for marketing. Also like other sites, it is all about gaining high levels of engagement. A business successfully marketing through twitter may even receive revenue from the site for its popularity. 

Twitter marketing strategies revolve around the audience. The use of hashtags allows for the tweets to be sent into a large pool of others containing the same hashtag. Businesses/organizations also choose what demographics would appeal to their product when promoting tweets. Twitter gathers information on its users and sells it to these companies so that they can include you in their demographic preset. This means that their ad will be prioritized on certain feeds. 

As an organizational tool, twitter has the ability to connect an extensive amount of people to one topic. Because of this, Twitter can be used as a tool for grouping people based on their beliefs. The Arab Spring is an example of this. Middle eastern countries that have an authoritarian government do not have the freedom to speak against their leaders. But, behind the scenes, the feeling of disapproval can be shared between Middle Eastern citizens through Tweets. “The hashtag #I_participated_in_January_Revolution had become the centre of an online battle between the supporters of the revolution and those who opposed it. (Shearlaw)” While face to face conversation gets more done, those unable to do that can have urgent conversations through Twitter and let that lead to whatever change may come. 

The political use of Twitter is the same as the political use of anything else. When it comes to political campaigns, twitter is used as a device to spew rhetoric and influence opinions. The government can also use twitter in their tactics to fight terrorism. “Recent studies have highlighted the enormous volume, sophistication and reach of ISIS’s online propaganda, suggesting that acts of terror may help the group attract supporters and revitalize its recruitment base. (Siegel)’ By evaluating the origin of these tweets, the government can get a better idea of the operation. “Twitter may act as an echo chamber to amplify extremist voices in the tightly clustered communities. But it can also help bridge the divide and expose online users with different sentiments to one another’s information sources and viewpoints. (Siegel)”

Twitter is not as accurate as the news because tweets only allow for so many characters. “Twitter does not “beat the news” and that even when it does react, the majority of that reaction comes in the form of retweets and link sharing, rather than users sharing their own personal perspectives on the events. (Leetaru)” Journalistic tactics are used to provide source-based articles covering news topics to users so that they are able to review the sources, get the facts, and form their own conclusion. Although, some users do not do this and retain inaccurate news. 

What makes Twitter so valuable for news, is its timeliness. Tweets from news sources can spread quickly, and trend. In natural disasters, this can be crucial. The 2017 Houston floods are an example of how much of an important resource twitter can be. “Even if calls could get through to 911, without electricity and the ability to charge their phones, people in trouble could waste precious battery power waiting on hold on the off-chance that someone would pick up and record their location. Tweeting, which only takes a second and can be done from any internet-enabled device with a battery charge, seemed to many like a much better option. (Cauterucci)” Tweets are virtually permanent and can be used to track location as well as the date posted. On the other hand, police departments and city officials can send tweets to their citizens during times of limited communication resources. 

Twitter has been used to spread information about the coronavirus to citizens of the entire world. Maps showing the spread over time help to educate, especially young people, on how important social distancing is. Along with this, Twitter has been trying to make an effort of providing accurate information by linking the CDC website at the top of every search mentioning the virus. 

Another example of gathering through Twitter regards the Netflix Docuseries called “Tiger King.” The main mystery, whether Carol fed her husband to the tigers is being evaluated left and right by Twitter users. It has been trending for days. Users have come up with some reasonable hypotheses, but overall, speculation only leads to more confusion. 

The shift from physical classes to online classroom formats has been hard for parents, students, and teachers. Through twitter, these people can share their experiences and aid each other by offer advice on navigation techniques. Many students are also using this platform to share empathy with one another about missing out on certain once-in-a-lifetime school events. 

Jeffree Star, Live PD, Ellen, and The Kentucky Derby are the organizations and people followed on Twitter for this previous project. I was able to do research on all of these topics in order to reply to them. Blogging is different from social media because it has a slower and lesser reach. Tweets can be viewed by users not following by including hashtags. Blogging is also longer, whereas tweets are short statements that try to convey everything intended within a certain word count. 

Citations

Cauterucci, Christina. “Viral Tweets Are Helping Some People Find Help in Houston. Social Media Can Do Much Better.” Slate Magazine, Slate, 28 Aug. 2017, slate.com/technology/2017/08/viral-tweets-are-helping-some-people-find-help-in-houston-social-media-can-do-much-better.html.

Leetaru, Kalev. “Is Twitter Really Faster Than The News?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 27 Feb. 2019, www.forbes.com/sites/kalevleetaru/2019/02/26/is-twitter-really-faster-than-the-news/#e4427041cf74.

Shearlaw, Maeve. “Egypt Five Years on: Was It Ever a 'Social Media Revolution'?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 25 Jan. 2016, www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/25/egypt-5-years-on-was-it-ever-a-social-media-revolution.

Siegel, Alexandra. “Here's What We Can Learn from How Twitter Responded to Paris.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 16 Nov. 2015, www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2015/11/16/heres-what-we-can-learn-from-how-twitter-responded-to-paris/.