Saturday, June 29, 2013
24 Hour News on Twitter
It's surprising the amount of information I encounter on Twitter. Earlier today Forbes Magazine (@Forbes) tweeted, "Astronomers confirm that there are three potentially habitable planets around a nearby star." Immediately this tweet caught my attention. I thought, is Forbes Magazine implying that there has been or potentially could be life on another planets? My interest was peaked and I clicked the link to Forbes' website (article).
I would classify Twitter as Journal of Assertion, it is a continuous news culture. It's a live broadcast. While the writing is pretty scientific, it answers the basic questions of who is writing? what are they writing about? and why are they writing it? The information comes from credentialed experts, the European Space Observatory (ESO). Forbes Magazine is normally a source I trust. The articles written are usually sourced from experts, or first hand accounts. Normally, Forbes does an excellent job of staying politically neutral, but does tend to lean conservative at times.
In general Twitter isn't the most reliable source. There have been more than a few instances when tweets have been inaccurate, or premature. For instance, when CBS Sports (@CBSSports) tweeted falsely about Joe Paterno's death, while he was still alive. On the other hand, Twitter and other social media channels can be an excellent source for news. As so long as readers are conscious of the source. The responsibility falls equally on the author to report accurately as on the reader to do proper due diligence.
Web 2.0 entails users to be active participants online. Anyone online can publish articles of their own opinions. That however should not discount the actual news and the plenty of reliable sources available online.
- Chaunice
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As surprising as it may seem, some people are paid to live tweet in order to increase the awareness of a particular brand or campaign.
ReplyDeleteThere was a competition for Mercedes C Class Middle East.
The winning tweet:
"In 2010, I worked so hard to avoid a C in class. In 2011, I'm dying to get into a C-Class. #MBME "
Prize:
He will drive away with a sporty new Mercedes-Benz 2012 C-Class sedan for a month!
During the competition MBME was trending and it was a great way to create a buzz. Everyone in this part of the world was talking about the campaign.
I'm just trying to say sometimes social media can be a very effective business tool as well.
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ReplyDeleteI have to admit - - I have NEVER been on Twitter. I have been on Facebook and other social media but for some reason never had the desire to tweet. It is interesting, though, how many people use it and I am impressed by how many news agencies also follows Tweets.
ReplyDeleteHi Chaunice,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you use Twitter as an initial source for news, but follow it up with other sites for validation since you don't always trust its accuracy.
Have you ever blocked anyone (person or company) or quit following someone (person or company) on Twitter because they were spreading false information? If you've ever found someone sending out false information on Twitter have you sent out a tweet letting them, and the world, know their information was false?
I'm asking that because I agree with you about Web 2.0 and its ability for participants to be consumers as well as providers. I have been mostly a consumer but have benefitted greatly from people who are investing their time as providers, and I want to be a more responsible provider, at the same time I am learning to be a wiser consumer.
Like Suzanne, I've never been on Twitter, but I've seen Twitter being used for broadcasting news from the Arab Spring. However, I do agree that social media should not be fully relied upon for the news. There are no journalistic guidelines on social media, so anyone can post anything they want, but without proper media literacy, misinformation can become viral very quick and having a misinformed public can be dangerous.
ReplyDelete