As I sipped my coffee this morning, as I usually do before actually starting to work, I first read my Twitter messages (which were not many), then I went straight to Google news – my main source of inspiration when writer’s block strikes. I think “writer’s block” is a bit too extreme to describe my actual state of mind. Let’s just say that I am not in the mood to write about SEO, public relations or body language. I was hoping the news would give me something meaningful to ponder upon, but the hype is more disturbing than ever.
Yesterday ReadWriteWeb reviewed a device that makes energy efficient homes “tweet” their energy consume. To be frank I don’t even understand how this is news and why the fuss about this “technological” wonder, but then again, I don’t understand why a plant should tweet “water me please” and why an unborn baby should use Twitter. I guess these are just some examples of what can be achieved with technology. But where’s the relevance and the value of these things to actually improve our lives, that’s something I really don’t see. But these are old news.
Today, as I said, browsing the news was painfully annoying. Every other second news title was Twitter related. It’s wonderful to see a company having so much success and being adopted so fast by so many people – unexpected I might say for a service that does nothing but letting people “chat” in a more organized and restricted way than traditional chat rooms. Twitter is the “hot” app of the moment, and it will probably die a silent death in a year or two, as soon as something cooler emerges. Take FriendFeed for example: it used to be so popular, for a very short while, when no one even bothered to talk about Twitter and microblogging fans were testing Jaiku and other Twitter-like platforms. Now FriendFeed and all its close relatives are operating in silence, because Oprah doesn’t join, because there is no Kutcher to follow.
Would Twitter be so successful without being supported by all these celebrities? It’s been pushed by marketers a lot since the beginning of the year, and now it’s being pushed even harder by people who, before Twitter, never even bothered to talk to the “little people.” But what amazes me is that these celebrities who praise Twitter so much are actually being there to promote themselves even more, and us, fools, believe that they are in a “dialog.”
Oprah follows ten people as I write this, but she is being followed by over 500000. And do you want to know what this icon is tweeting about? Herself, and her show, that’s what. She’s not on Twitter to talk to anyone (but Larry King, and Demi Moore, and Ashton Kutcher, and other such resonant names). She is on Twitter to bring more exposure to her show, and the brand Oprah.
And what about Kutcher? The “king” of Twitter… He follows 95 people and is being followed by over 1300000. I remember watching him live with Larry King and saying that the best thing about Twitter is that you choose who to answer – meaning that if you don’t feel like answering to one of your followers it’s all right.
The point is that these people don’t care about the Twitter community. They care about themselves and others who can push their careers, and they think it’s all right to be on Twitter and ignore questions from their public. You know? The public? Those people who actually pay to see these icons on TV and on the screen?
The good news for Twitter is that every time a celebrity like Oprah joins the network the traffic to Twitter.com boosts (and the whale sings, but this is another story). No wonder that one of the news titles today read Twitter Success Helped by Celebs. And the celebs are on Twitter to do good, you know. They are supporting altruistic causes like same sex marriage and curing the world from malaria. Aren’t you impressed to see so much altruism? (!)
All this happens while in Moldova young people are being held prisoners for trying to use Twitter against the Communist Party and Jim Mullen thinks that Twitter is a place where he can tell us about his showers.
Mig,
I have resisted Twitter, and it seems the more I hear, the more I resist.
I know many people love it, but I just haven’t figured out the attraction.
Lillie Ammann’s last blog post..Author Interview: Stacie Vander Pol
I don’t know but I can’t feel that twitter is so important . the world was still there whem there was no twitter. twitter has become a place where you can market and spam about your products easily
OK, MIg. It’s very obvious that Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher had already planned to dominate the Twitter fans in the very beginning… Well, even Oprah and Larry King would like to become the Twitter Dominator as well?
It was inevitable that Celebs start using twitter, people already hang on their every word and deed. Now you can get it straight from the celeb in almost real time!
Good way to keep people talking about you, or even better, to drum up interest in an upcoming movie or part. You don’t even have to do the work, just have you PR person write a note a couple times a day.
@lillie – I am on twitter and I see how it could be good, but the hype and the stupidity taking over everything with potential value leave nothing to chance.
@gagan – I hear you! Twitter is not so important, it is made important but those who use it.
@Wilson Pon – do you think Demi and the thing will get new roles because of this? LOOOL. See, this is what happens when untalented people get a shot to fame.
@Taylor – you know, I am a PR myself, but I will never accept to pretend to be someone else for my clients. This means: if they want a twitter account, they should as well manage it themselves.