Twitter: Leveling the Playing Field

Angel Almaraz
Dr. Jason Farman
DTC 375
9 April 2009
Word Count: 758

Twitter: Leveling the Playing Field

In the past, the distribution of information was limited to newspapers, journals, and news channels and access to people in positions of power was greatly limited. If you wanted to ask a politician a question, you had to have specific credentials that gave you access to the politician. We looked to journalists and news channels to provide us with information. The growth of blogging changed that and now Twitter is taking it a step further.

Unlike social networking sites, such as MySpace and Facebook, Twitter limits the amount of information a user can post at one time. This limitation forces the user to cut out all the filler information they may usually include, requiring them to get to the point. The limitation of 140 characters per tweet also well suited for sending tweets from cell phones, which increases the interactivity and mobility of the information being sent. Unless users carried their laptops with them, their updates to MySpace and Facebook were usually sent from the same location. Because users can easily post updates from their cell phones, we are seeing an increase in the amount of information being sent out.

Updates are also being posted from a wide variety of locations, including courtrooms, the senate floor, and the presidential primaries. During one Obama’s campaign stops a reporter sent a question to Obama which was responded to by an audience member. Obama then responded to the reporter and the audience member (Dickerson). All of this happened in real time and without the formality of a traditional campaign stop. In the future candidates will have to rethink the ways in which they run their campaigns. Because the general public has had unprecedented access to the candidates during our last presidential campaign they will expect the same type of access for all campaigns.

Twitter is changing the way journalists do their job. In the past, a journalist went to a press conference or interview, took notes, prepared their story, and submitted it for publication. Now they can send out tweets in real time, perhaps relaying information that would not make the final version of their story. People following journalists can also suggest a wide variety of questions that the journalist may have not thought of. (Dickerson)

Twitter is also changing its predecessors. When Facebook’s attempt to acquire Twitter failed, Facebook redesigned their site. Facebook now features real-time web updating and even changed their prompt to more closely resemble the Twitter prompt. (Gahan)

The simplicity of Twitter may also attract more users than social networking sites. Some people may have stayed away from blogging and social network sites because of the limitless amount of information they could post, which can be overwhelming. Twitter limits the amount of information you can provide and the time commitment to send a tweet is very small. It takes just a moment to inform everyone following you how your day is going or what current problem you are facing. The time commitment required to read all the tweets you may be receiving is another story.

The Internet has leveled the playing field in terms of the global economic structure. Companies with access to the Internet are now on the same level and have the same opportunities and access to the same consumers. Twitter is changing the social structure of our society. Twitter users are on the same level because all user accounts on Twitter are the same for everyone. There is no longer a difference between celebrities, politicians, and the general public. Because there is no longer a distinction between users, the general public has greater access to people in positions of power or status. The general public can interact directly with their favorite celebrity or send a question to a politician. That would not have been possible in the past.

Some of the criticism of Twitter is that the mundane natural of the majority of tweets sent proves that it has no real value. But it is exactly the mundane natural of the tweets that reminds users that, regardless of our standing in the world, we are basically the same. We all face the same issues and problems in varying degrees. Just as a user sends out a tweet commenting on the boring meeting they are sitting through, a member of Congress sends out a tweet about the boring meeting they are sitting through. Technology continues to expand and gives us new ways to connect with each other, bringing us closer together in the ways that matter most, the small ways.

Works Cited

Dickerson, John. “Don’t Fear Twitter.” Nieman Reports. (Summer 2008). <http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/reportsitem.aspx?id=100007>

Gahan, Brendan. “With Twitter Envy, Facebook Adds (Near) Real-time Web Capabilitites.: GigaOM. 4 March 2009. <http://gigaom.com/2009/03/04/twitter-vs-facebook-real-time- web/>