We used to wake up in the morning to the sound of tweeting birds. Now we wake up to the sounds of different tweets — the ones coming from our phones.
Twitter has become one of the most critical platforms for staying up to date on global news. The front page was once the go-to place for news — now, the landscape has changed and there are no deadlines. News is reported and consumed by everyone, all the time. From the President of the United States to the person who is tired of waiting to be let into a bar, everyone has a voice. But what are the effects of receiving our news so rapidly?
With a growing number of reporters and “citizen journalists,” we have access to an ever-expanding amount of information that is questionable in validity. While established outlets like The New York Times or BBC have a vested interest in fact-checking everything that they run, anonymous people with Twitter accounts may not care so much about their trustworthy reputation.
For example, this is not the real Ed Snowden, but a fake account writing about random things:
Barbara Walters has been vetoed in naming me one of the world’s most interesting people. http://t.co/bQo16T8BbL
— Edward Snowden (@ejosephsnowedin) December 6, 2013
Thankfully, we can still tap into the potential of platforms like Twitter due to cooperative efforts between news outlets and online citizens. Outlets such as NBC encourage Twitter users and others to submit photos and updates when they witness developing stories, and they have teams to verify accuracy. Trustworthy outlets understand the importance of working with “lay-journalists” with camera phones and Twitter accounts to give them a global reach. This feed shows photos of the destruction following April’s Nepal earthquake that were sourced from Twitter. The Wall Street Journal’s team trusted their accuracy and bolstered their credibility by publishing them. Aside from providing an immense quantity of information, Twitter personalizes media. I can’t imagine the validation that Twitter, as a tech company, must feel when the President of the United States makes an account on its website. Obama even made use of the outlet recently to offer a comment on the Syrian refugee crisis:
Slamming the door in the face of refugees would betray our deepest values. That’s not who we are. And it’s not what we’re going to do. — President Obama (@POTUS) November 18, 2015
There is something fundamentally different between seeing Obama’s comments reported by an outlet and seeing them directly on his personal account. Twitter has created a platform that personalizes information by linking stories to individuals’ profiles. While the leader of the free world might seem distant when making a statement from behind a podium, he is another voice in a discussion on Twitter.
Twitter’s ability to personalize news has also been used by those seeking to create a cult of personality and manipulate news flow. Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has used his Twitter profile to retaliate against his enemies, selectively broadcast information and boost his support.
Correa has challenged political opponents to fist fights on Twitter in order to cultivate a “machismo” appeal among the Ecuadorian voter base. The association of tweets with his persona allows him to distort information — Correa’s supporters might be more likely to believe statements tweeted by his account.
…Revolución, es fundamental. Felizmente, insisto, estoy convencido que en 2017 venceremos con uno de los muchos cuadros de la Revolución.
— Rafael Correa (@MashiRafael) November 19, 2015
Correa’s above tweet, which insists that “Revolution is fundamental,” aims to paint Correa and his party as the champions of Ecuadorian patriotism. Twitter allows him to release charismatic, controversial rhetoric around the clock.
As outlets expand their reach and source information and photos from around the globe via Twitter, we all have more access to more varied information. Because of platforms like Twitter, the news is transforming from a service into a conversation.
