Blog Post 6 of 12: Twitter

Take a look at this parody of twitter on youtube.com called "Twouble with Twitter."   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN2HAroA12w

Respond to the character's question as he enters the twittersphere:  "Who are they talking to?"  Do you wonder who your audience is when you post on twitter?  Do you feel differently about your audience in online writing environments?  Is your relationship to your online audience distinct?  Who do you imagine is reading your tweets, for example?

This animation clearly doubts the viability of twitter as a valuable tool?  What do you think?   What is the purpose of microblogging?

The characters are talking to the whole “Twitterverse” (likely anyone who follows them on Twitter).  I do not wonder who my audience is on Twitter because I protect my tweets and profile.  I only approve people I know or recognize (and I am pretty sure nobody else can easily find out what I tweet, who I tweet with, and who follows me).  I can say that I have met all of my Twitter followers in “real” life.  I only feel differently about my online audience when I have no control over who can see my posts (i.e. Twitter/Facebook v. Blogger).  On Blogger, I am more toned down than I am on Facebook or Twitter, when the only people who see what I am writing are my friends and people who know me.  Like I said, the only people who read my tweets are people I know in the real world, so those are the people I would imagine are reading my tweets.

I can honestly say that I can live without Twitter.  It is nice, but it is not a valuable tool in my life.  I get a lot of information regarding sports on Twitter (i.e. starting lineups, injuries, trades, etc.), but if I need to talk to someone immediately, I will text them or call them, then Facebook them, then Instant Message them, and if all of these prior methods fail, I will then try to tweet them.  I am against microblogging because I like to keep my private matters, well private.  I do not want strangers reading my thoughts.