I'm a Serious Twitter-er

          I tried Twitter when it first came out, but I didn’t like it at all. I compared it to Facebook and liked Facebook better. I didn’t realize then that they are completely different entities. As I’m becoming more familiar with Twitter, I am starting to see the benefits of it.  The benefits are more than just being able to “connect” with famous people. 

            My Twitter personality I think is more of a serious one. I don’t think I’m that funny, so I don’t try to be so when I write a Tweet.  If you look at my following list you will find a few celebrities, but the bulk I’m following are non-profit agencies, government entities, and news.  I find their Tweets to be really helpful.

             If I was not in this class, I don’t think I’d be following any tech companies, but I find it extremely helpful for this class.  I think that’s one reason we are being asked to use Twitter so we can see what other technologies are out there. But another reason I think we are asked to use it is to learn how to be more concise and short with our wording.  Most of us are English majors and are used to writing long papers, but most people don’t seem to want to read long papers, they want something short that they can read quickly. So I guess one aspect is to learn how to communicate well with the general public who wants quick and short information.  Then once a readers interest is piqued, they can go follow some link and read a long article if they choose to do so.  Twitter is a good new media because it can often point you in the direction of other new media.  

            I think Tweets are retweeted if they are significant or are innovative and something that people haven’t heard before.   I want to work on this aspect because my Tweets haven’t been really interesting.  I have been followed by some people and organizations who seem pretty important so I want to Tweet things that sound educated, smart, and important.  I am finding myself wanting to shy away from posting personal topics and instead post things that might matter to a wider audience.

            I think Twitter can be a force for good in the world, but I’m not sure how many people would even think about signing up for Twitter for these purposes.