While catching up on one of my favorite guilty pleasure TV shows Pretty Little Liars, I could not help but notice the #PLL or #WhosA hash tags at the bottom of the screen. Automatically I knew there was a Twitter discussion being held about a series that only airs episodes on ABC Family’s network and official website. The instant ‘#’ symbol suggested that I too joined in on the conversation being held on what once started as a website to express one’s unfiltered thoughts with 140 characters, to what now is one of the leading communication platforms on the web. By looking at the historical context and the cultural impact the media technology has on media users, one can critique Twitter as a highly media influenced platform that is making media consumption more interactive for the users.
Twitter now hosts over 288 million active users according to their website. “The Real History of Twitter,” by Nicholas Carlson, states the fascination with status and the keeping members of a group up to date with personal activity fueled the idea. The company was incorporated in 2007 after founders Evan Williams, Noah Glass, Jack Dorsey, and Biz Stone launched the idea to Glass Inc. in 2006, (Business Insider, 2011). Twitter lists these founders as members of the Board of Directors today. The idea behind Twitter was to automatically update members of a fellow social group via text. This soon shifted into online social platforms where a single status can be blasted out to fellow follower’s timelines. The mission mentioned on Twitter’s current about page states their overall goal is “To give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers.” Within 140 characters, Twitter users can post “Tweets” about pop-culture, politics, sports, current events, general thoughts, etc. Twitter has shortened the wordy message on social media platforms and strongly influences the way users interact with all sorts of media.
According to TIME online “Twitter has become the world’s virtual water cooler,” (Luckerson, 2013). The discussion on Twitter and the trends circulating through the use of hash tags changes everyday. This open platform allows users to connect or follow as many users as they’d like. Whether it is their favorite celebrity, author, scholar, journalist, artist, best friend, cousin, etc., the possibilities to be virtually connected is endless. We see this come into play when participants actively engage with other media as well. According to Henry Jenkins in Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, “passive media spectatorship” is something of the past with participatory culture. “Rather than talking about media producers and consumers as occupying separate roles, we might now see them as participants who interact with each other according to new set of rules,” (Jenkins, 3). Twitter and the use of hash tags can be tracked when clicked on by audiences. This is put to use when viewers vote for their favorite contestants on competition shows such as Dancing With The Stars or X-Factor. For the Pretty Little Liars example given earlier, the #PLL hash tag leads viewers into a chat-room like conversation between fans also watching the show live. According to TIME “The Twitter activity reaches new people and those new people actually change their behavior based on a tweet and come and tune in,” (Luckerson, 2013). Twitter and TV ratings can be monitored. Results for award shows can be determined within the entire airtime through retweeting artists and hash tags. The emotions felt by participants are instantly accounted for. Pretty Little Liars fans have open discussions throughout the live airing of the television show and express their emotions. These emotions are key for producers to follow with what the audience wants. According to Jenkins, a term for this is called “lovemarks.” Jenkins references CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi Kevin Roberts when he claims “The future of consumer relations lies with ‘lovemarks’ that are more powerful than traditional ‘brands’ because they command the love as well as the respect of consumers,” (Jenkins, 70). By having the audience of Pretty Little Liars live tweet throughout the show, the producers are able to track emotions, reactions, questions, and so on. The Twitter universe is one large conversation that now is a huge way of users to be in direct contact with those in charge of producing media. The audience is judging and critiquing the media at a faster rate with Twitter. I explain the importance of Twitter and the relationship it has to television specifically, however television is not the only media outlet that Twitter impacts. Live events can be monitored on Twitter as well as political elections, music festivals, conventions, and sporting events. Public entertainment and the events surrounding them are all up for discussion. Gossip is largely fueled through Twitter. According to Jenkins, “It isn’t who you are talking about but who you are talking with that matters,” (Jenkins, 84). Twitter’s website states that over 500 million tweets are generated each day. That is a ton of gossip being read by not only media viewers but also producers and advertisers. Twitter is like an open chat room or discussion board where users can change topics without ever leaving the same page.
While some may argue that Twitter fuels more than just gossip that has to do with TV or movies, I would like to critique Twitter in regards to how it effects media culture as a whole. Twitter’s one of the most interactive platforms for an audience to openly and quickly discuss media or society in general. Jenkins states “As cyberspace broadens the sphere of our social interactions, it becomes even more important to be able to talk about people we share in common via the media than people from our local community who will not be known by all of the participants in an online conversation,” (Jenkins, 84). Twitter is viewed as a platform that tracks trends. Those who do not follow trends on Twitter might see those same trends later on, whether it is on the evening news or newspapers the next day. Twitter has changed the speed in which people get their information. Reporters and other online news sources can publish statements and keep audiences updated instantly as events are taking place. The critique on this aspect alone can be positive and negative. Anyone can tweet, and the news being published “without barriers” could be false. Twitter is viewed to some as a legitimate news medium, just as it is considered to be a platform for criticism. As Jenkins states above, there is a difference between those who are tweeting and those who are not. However, the accuracy of information found on Twitter may not always be as reputable as those published in more length through other medias.
Twitter as a whole allows an audience to become fully interactive with media such as television programs and live events. Referring to Twitter as a reputable place to get facts right away can be questionable, depending on the account blasting that information. Twitter allows producers and creators of media to interact with their audiences live as the consumers are taking in that said media. At the end of my DVR marathon of Pretty Little Liars there is a part of me that wished I had watched the season finale sooner. The hash tag #AisRevealed would have been more fun to monitor if I was watching the show live. Twitter as one media platform has converged into my television viewing. Although the season of a television series comes to an end the conversation surrounding it is not over thanks to Twitter. The conversation is live.
Work Cited:
Carlson, Nicholas. "The Real History Of Twitter." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 13 Apr. 2011. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York University Press, 2008.
Luckerson, Victor. "Twitter’s Big Push to Monetize Social TV." TIME, 08 Aug. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Twitter.Com
Twitter now hosts over 288 million active users according to their website. “The Real History of Twitter,” by Nicholas Carlson, states the fascination with status and the keeping members of a group up to date with personal activity fueled the idea. The company was incorporated in 2007 after founders Evan Williams, Noah Glass, Jack Dorsey, and Biz Stone launched the idea to Glass Inc. in 2006, (Business Insider, 2011). Twitter lists these founders as members of the Board of Directors today. The idea behind Twitter was to automatically update members of a fellow social group via text. This soon shifted into online social platforms where a single status can be blasted out to fellow follower’s timelines. The mission mentioned on Twitter’s current about page states their overall goal is “To give everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly, without barriers.” Within 140 characters, Twitter users can post “Tweets” about pop-culture, politics, sports, current events, general thoughts, etc. Twitter has shortened the wordy message on social media platforms and strongly influences the way users interact with all sorts of media.
According to TIME online “Twitter has become the world’s virtual water cooler,” (Luckerson, 2013). The discussion on Twitter and the trends circulating through the use of hash tags changes everyday. This open platform allows users to connect or follow as many users as they’d like. Whether it is their favorite celebrity, author, scholar, journalist, artist, best friend, cousin, etc., the possibilities to be virtually connected is endless. We see this come into play when participants actively engage with other media as well. According to Henry Jenkins in Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, “passive media spectatorship” is something of the past with participatory culture. “Rather than talking about media producers and consumers as occupying separate roles, we might now see them as participants who interact with each other according to new set of rules,” (Jenkins, 3). Twitter and the use of hash tags can be tracked when clicked on by audiences. This is put to use when viewers vote for their favorite contestants on competition shows such as Dancing With The Stars or X-Factor. For the Pretty Little Liars example given earlier, the #PLL hash tag leads viewers into a chat-room like conversation between fans also watching the show live. According to TIME “The Twitter activity reaches new people and those new people actually change their behavior based on a tweet and come and tune in,” (Luckerson, 2013). Twitter and TV ratings can be monitored. Results for award shows can be determined within the entire airtime through retweeting artists and hash tags. The emotions felt by participants are instantly accounted for. Pretty Little Liars fans have open discussions throughout the live airing of the television show and express their emotions. These emotions are key for producers to follow with what the audience wants. According to Jenkins, a term for this is called “lovemarks.” Jenkins references CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi Kevin Roberts when he claims “The future of consumer relations lies with ‘lovemarks’ that are more powerful than traditional ‘brands’ because they command the love as well as the respect of consumers,” (Jenkins, 70). By having the audience of Pretty Little Liars live tweet throughout the show, the producers are able to track emotions, reactions, questions, and so on. The Twitter universe is one large conversation that now is a huge way of users to be in direct contact with those in charge of producing media. The audience is judging and critiquing the media at a faster rate with Twitter. I explain the importance of Twitter and the relationship it has to television specifically, however television is not the only media outlet that Twitter impacts. Live events can be monitored on Twitter as well as political elections, music festivals, conventions, and sporting events. Public entertainment and the events surrounding them are all up for discussion. Gossip is largely fueled through Twitter. According to Jenkins, “It isn’t who you are talking about but who you are talking with that matters,” (Jenkins, 84). Twitter’s website states that over 500 million tweets are generated each day. That is a ton of gossip being read by not only media viewers but also producers and advertisers. Twitter is like an open chat room or discussion board where users can change topics without ever leaving the same page.
While some may argue that Twitter fuels more than just gossip that has to do with TV or movies, I would like to critique Twitter in regards to how it effects media culture as a whole. Twitter’s one of the most interactive platforms for an audience to openly and quickly discuss media or society in general. Jenkins states “As cyberspace broadens the sphere of our social interactions, it becomes even more important to be able to talk about people we share in common via the media than people from our local community who will not be known by all of the participants in an online conversation,” (Jenkins, 84). Twitter is viewed as a platform that tracks trends. Those who do not follow trends on Twitter might see those same trends later on, whether it is on the evening news or newspapers the next day. Twitter has changed the speed in which people get their information. Reporters and other online news sources can publish statements and keep audiences updated instantly as events are taking place. The critique on this aspect alone can be positive and negative. Anyone can tweet, and the news being published “without barriers” could be false. Twitter is viewed to some as a legitimate news medium, just as it is considered to be a platform for criticism. As Jenkins states above, there is a difference between those who are tweeting and those who are not. However, the accuracy of information found on Twitter may not always be as reputable as those published in more length through other medias.
Twitter as a whole allows an audience to become fully interactive with media such as television programs and live events. Referring to Twitter as a reputable place to get facts right away can be questionable, depending on the account blasting that information. Twitter allows producers and creators of media to interact with their audiences live as the consumers are taking in that said media. At the end of my DVR marathon of Pretty Little Liars there is a part of me that wished I had watched the season finale sooner. The hash tag #AisRevealed would have been more fun to monitor if I was watching the show live. Twitter as one media platform has converged into my television viewing. Although the season of a television series comes to an end the conversation surrounding it is not over thanks to Twitter. The conversation is live.
Work Cited:
Carlson, Nicholas. "The Real History Of Twitter." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 13 Apr. 2011. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York University Press, 2008.
Luckerson, Victor. "Twitter’s Big Push to Monetize Social TV." TIME, 08 Aug. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Twitter.Com