Classical Values :: Almost pointless, but not completely pointless!

February 23, 2010

Almost pointless, but not completely pointless!

I first heard about Twitter back in 2007 -- back when I attempted to "live-blog" the September 2007 Republican debate at Morgan State University, and I believe it was Robert Cox of the Media Bloggers Association who told me about the new phenomenon. I'm all for communication, but at the time it didn't make much sense to have simply another place to put words in cyberspace. It's like, I already have this blog (and now I also have Facebook), but it all seems like such a chore sometimes, and besides, people who want to know what I think would read my thoughts here. Why would they go to Twitter?

Thinking that I should at least "keep up with the times" (if that's the right expression), last year I finally got around to creating a Twitter account, and on May 7, 2009, I authored (would that be uttered?) the following "tweet":

trying not to get involved.

That remained my status, and not much has happened to change my opinion.

The thing is, I keep seeing people's tweets getting cited as if they are just as important as blog posts, and I wonder what's up with that? Why? It seems like blogging-lite, so why bother.

Ultimately, what's the point of Twitter? Asking that very question, I found a detailed list of reasons:

1. It's a great way to publish to mobile devices;

Classical Values already has a PDA link, and I have no idea whether anyone uses it. Why would I want to publish to mobile devices? And whose? I am not so self-important as to imagine there's any urgency in what I have to say in these essays that I need to publish them to people's mobile devices.

2. it's a social networking tool to make contacts and carry on conversations;

As to making contacts, how is it any better than Facebook or email? And I have enough "conversations." I can barely keep up as it is. Any more and I wouldn't have time to write blog posts.

3. it's a way of discovering new information (through tips and leads);

Perhaps it is. I guess there are people who "Twitter" things they wouldn't ordinarily "say." Or "post." Much less "write." Still, if they are important and significant enough, someone else will notice them. This tweet from Jon Henke (that Huckabee complained about too much libertarianism at CPAC) was widely linked. But there's no substitute for the detailed analysis I found linked at Instapundit, and I am not sure Twitter is designed for such things.

4. it's a great way to follow what's happening through your mobile (set Twitter up to send you mobile updates)

NO NO NO! I cannot stand beeping and ringing of any sort. If someone calls me on the phone, it's an interruption, and there is nothing more annoying than the beep of a text message. I get enough email already, OK? I don't have the time or the patience to handle what I now have.

Sorry, but I will not be a prisoner of what amounts to a constant, ongoing campaign of relentless electronic harassment.

5. It's a way of organising people

Who in the hell am I going to "organize"? I can barely organize myself. Sheesh. It may well be a great tool for activists, though. But what if you dislike activists and activism? Might it be used against them? My problem is even if I agree with a cause, I don't want to hear about it 24/7, and I especially don't want opinions and requests constantly thrown at me. It leads to a state of total burnout. I worry that Twitter might only be helping to generate more "white noise" -- another part of that contentious cacophony of millions of voices, each one demanding to be heard, demanding to be taken seriously, and because that cannot happen, tensions rise accordingly.

6. It's a great way of reporting from a live event or other occasions when you only have your phone

OK, now that may be true, and the following may also be worth exploring:

7. You can aggregate a number of twitter feeds to one collective feed of what a group of people are doing
8. You can push an RSS feed into twitter, creating a mobile/social network update
9. For bloggers, it's a good place to put thoughts and ideas that are so brief you wouldn't normally blog them

So for five cents per text message, I can put thoughts on Twitter that I normally wouldn't blog about. That seemed enough reason to set it up to work with my cell phone, which I did last night.

But this morning I worried whether it might be extravagant:

A nickel a tweet? Are my thoughts worth it?

I wouldn't ask such a frivolous question here on the blog, but it seemed worth asking on the cell phone -- if for no other reason than to test the setup. I guess it's not a bad idea to have the ability to put a thought into cyberspace anytime, from anywhere. But it has to be worth the nickel.

Still, it is obvious that I am not using the technology to its maximum potential. Am I missing out on anything profound?

posted by Eric on 02.23.10 at 12:03 PM

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Comments

It seems like a step backwards to me, where teh little peepul follow what their heroes utter.
I like blogging, I get to talk back.

Of course, most people "lurk" and don't comment so maybe I'm the weird one.

But then, I already knew that.

Veeshir · February 23, 2010 12:30 PM

Ah, that's what you meant! I thought you had found some way to make money by tweeting.

I use it to get an idea of what people are talking about without having to deal with loading dozens of sites. I find out every time Roger Ebert posts a new review (or sees something amusing), here news about my favorite shows and music from the creators, and stay on top of all of my favorite classics and skeptic blogs. I don't have time to read everything, but twitter gives me a good way of deciding what I might want to look at later.

Much like the concept behind academic book reviews, which allow scholars to get a sense of the range and value of countless publications, twitter allows me to build a list of people whose judgment I trust. I get a sense of what's going on in all these different areas that I couldn't possibly explore in detail, but people also provide links to what they're talking about, so whatever particularly grabs me can be easily followed up.

It's a great supplement to blogs, etc., especially for someone like me, who has a smart phone and unlimited internet.

Dennis · February 23, 2010 01:28 PM

Thank You for posting this! I really like your blog!!

Common Cents
http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com

ps. Link Exchange?

Steve · February 23, 2010 01:32 PM

I have seen that same comment from 'Steve' at a host of blogs but I have never even wanted to click it.
I have to wonder if it's me and if others click that link.
I mean, give me a reason to click, there's too many blogs out there to be randomly clicking.

Veeshir · February 23, 2010 01:37 PM

I am constantly on FB but Twitter does not do anything for me. I get requests from people who want to follow ME. Say what?? I echo your sentiments about phone beeping and ringing. Annoys the cr@p out of me, too. I think Twitter is good for high profile folks. But though I'm "following" some I never log in to see what's happening. If it's anything important, FB or Instapundit informs me. Twitter seems more like a form of collective masturbation than anything else.

Peg C. · February 23, 2010 01:55 PM

Thanks for the input, Dennis, except I don't see how I could send a link from my cell phone. (I'd have to do that online.)

Veeshir, I think "Steve" is a bot, because he left a post here asking for a link from another blogger who hadn't even commented:

http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2010/01/going_light.html

Is it asking too much for commenters to at least be people?

I mean, as it is, I get asked to do enough things by people. This is getting ridiculous.

Eric Scheie · February 23, 2010 07:04 PM

And hey Veeshir, if you can figure out whether this "Steve" is a real link whore or a fake link whore, I'll give you a big-tittied ewok!

Eric Scheie · February 23, 2010 07:12 PM

Heh.
The problem is that would require me to click his link.

Veeshir · February 24, 2010 08:45 AM

I do have to say it's amusing this came up in a post that ends with this comment.

Still, it is obvious that I am not using the technology to its maximum potential. Am I missing out on anything profound?

Veeshir · February 24, 2010 11:45 AM

It's a great way of being further up the news stream - you see what reporters/pundits are thinking and researching. The unformed thoughts that lead to stories or never make it into stories.

Great for activists and those who are engaged with a party.

Also useful to crowdsource information before it gets to a news aggregator or that your news aggregators don't track.

Amazing for live events thanks to hashtags - Iran, disasters, etc

Reality Check · February 28, 2010 02:41 PM