I have had a Twitter account for over a year now, and I just created a second public account for our class. In comparison, I have been on Facebook since my freshman year of high school if not sooner. I believe Facebook has become ubiquitous in our society - and acts as the new "myspace" of our generation (strangers can message you now!). Twitter, on the other hand, is not quite as universal in our society and is still rare.
In my own experience I use Facebook purely for personal use. I post pictures, write wall posts, comment on friends walls, generally keep in touch only with people I know of. Conversely, with Twitter I follow celebrities, museums, friends, family, even political figures. With Twitter I post my personal thoughts of inspiration or amusing quotes with other users. With Twitter I can start a conversation on one subject/topic simply by using a hashtag. On Facebook I comment directly and purposefully towards a friend instead of a general audience. With Twitter I feel I simply post statuses and things I enjoy for those who wish to follow me while Facebook has less privacy and I need to filter myself so that I don't bombard anyone's newsfeed.
Social Media truly has entered every aspect of our society and I believe it is only the beginning. There are drawbacks to everything - lack of privacy, etc. However it has made globalization in terms of communication occur at an alarming rate (global shrinking phenomenon). Celebrities now have verified Twitters and Facebook pages, even public officials, and news conglomerates as well. We are past the age of the internet and have entered the time of social media. Due to the prevalence of iPads, smartphones, computers, and other devices, social media is accessible basically anywhere and can infiltrate our lives. Ultimately, social media is at the nexus of our society and we are all waiting for the next innovation to come to fruition.
Just wondering about your Facebook engagement. Do you "like" any pages? any products? organizations? That's another way to aggregate information and conversation.
ReplyDeleteSocial media is changing the way we "converse", indeed. It's happening at a rapid pace; and social norms are still being... invented? (is that the right word?)