As I mentioned in a previous post, Twitter serves as a news force in real time. But Twitter's greatest power may be in grassroots mobilization. David Lee King, in Face2Face: Using Facebook, Twitter, and Other Social Media Tools to Create Great Customer Connections, referred to the example of Berkeley journalism grad student James Karl Buck, who was jailed in Egypt for taking photos of a demonstration. After his arrest, Buck quickly Tweeted "Arrested." Buck's followers then called the United States Embassy and his college, with the latter hiring an attorney for Buck, who was then swiftly released (see Mallory Simon's "Student Twitters His Way Out of Egyptian Jail" at http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/04/25/twitter.buck/index.html?eref=onion).
What's also interesting about this is that Simon's article from April 2008 had to explain what Twitter was. Twitter came out in 2006, so it was still a new phenomenon in 2008, and arrested student Buck had only learned how to Tweet the week before his arrest. Of course, since then, millions of Tweets have been sent, using Twitter for organizing protests and demonstrations, most notably during the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions in early 2011 (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/september-11/twitters-influence-on-the-arab-spring/article2135272/).
People have Tweeted breaking news and events. Tweets arrive asking for help and giving information during disasters and riots. Web-ranking service Alexa cites Twitter as the #9 site on the web. All this, and yet I have stayed away from Twitter. As an English nerd, I find 140 characters slightly restrictive, as I can go on and on about a topic (case in point: this blog). I've never really felt the need to Tweet. With the Burkean concept of an already ongoing conversation and me just joining the room, what could I have to say that would be important that hasn't already been said or will be said? I've had some trouble finding that voice.
I resisted Facebook at first, too. In college in 2006, many were joining the growing social network, but I resisted, cautious of my online presence. Finally, in Fall 2007, a classmate convinced me, and there was no turning back. I believe it will be the same with Twitter, as I have finally joined the conversation. Follow me at @alexasandbakken as I begin to find my voice and contribute to the ongoing global discussion.
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