Twitter?
I apologize if this ends up being a useless stream of consciousness that doesn’t make sense in any way shape or form. I have no idea what I’m doing. As usual.
Okay, so I was thinking of working with Twitter. I haven’t really found a constructive way to make it work, but I thought it could be funny and relatable. I like to tweet, personally, and use it as an outlet for all the dumb observations I make throughout the day (don’t worry, I hate myself for referring to Twitter as an “outlet” just as much as you do).
When it comes to the purpose, I get a little bit stuck but I have a general sense of where I want to go. I was talking to my friend about it and she suggested that I make it a commentary on the fact that Twitter isn’t entirely mindless (I’m not completely convinced, though, that it isn’t). I could start it as a conversation, where a friend makes fun of me for using Twitter. This happens a lot: “I would never use Twitter, I don’t get why you do.” I hate that, because why not? I don’t know if I could make this work exactly, audio-wise, but I would make it as though I’m scrolling through my Twitter feed, reading the tweets out loud. I was also thinking I could get other people to read them, for that universal feel. I’ll start out reading really pointless ones. “Just went to the gym.” Who cares? The same person from before will make comments about how pointless it all is. Then come the funny ones. I don’t see how you can argue that something is bad if it makes you laugh. So, then, my friend will start laughing and admit that maybe there is some point to it after all. There are also inspirational quotes, political movements, stuff like that. I also want to point out that there are comedians whose careers were launched because of their tweets. Personally, I want to write for TV, and I think tweets are a little window into that. Maybe to a very, very small extent, but it’s still there. Writing for TV, you have to be concise. What’s more concise than 140 characters?
I think I can make this work, but there is a very good chance that it will just make me sound like a complete idiot if not done right. I am likely to change my mind, but for now I really like the idea of working with tweets as my project. An entire project based on Twitter sounds a little bit ridiculous, but we are a society that thrives on social networking. I’m really excited to try this and see where it goes.
5 responses so far
You mention that your affect is to be funny and relatable. I think with the topic of Twitter that will be very easy to achieve, since most of us can relate to it and can find humor in it. I actually think that your purpose is pretty good. There has to be some valuable qualities to Twitter, otherwise why would millions and millions of people subscribe to it. I’m not so cynical as to believe that so many millions of our fellow Americans are completely mindless airheads. I like how you want to show the positive side of something that many “educated” people consider an utter joke and a waste of time. Your technique of a dialogue is also really interesting, and I think it will keep the listener engaged throughout your broadcast. I think it would be funny if you got someone older to be the other side of the dialogue (because you know how the older generation is always hating on our lazy, mindless generation), but it’s up to you! Good luck and I’m looking forward to hearing your final product.
I actually use Twitter, lightly, mostly for research, with some “fun” people that I follow for entertainment value. I can talk in class about how I use it for research when we get to Polina’s project. Twitter is actually an amazing resource, in some ways, and so much more useful from a scholarly standpoint than any other social networking/sharing site I know of or have used (Facebook, Pinterest, Soundcloud). I may be in the minority in terms of how people use Twitter, but I wonder. Are there any stats out there on Twitter users and their purposes for using it?
I agree with Chaya that the dialogue style of your project is very interesting. I like the idea that this twitter reading takes place in a very relatable setting and that it could happen realistically in the span of a couple of minutes. I feel like that would make your project very natural and also give it personality. I’m sure that this idea won’t make you sound idiotic because it seems like you enjoy twitter and you’re probably knowledgeable about it. I’m not a twitter user so I’m not really familiar with your topic but the purpose is clear: that you want to let people know that Twitter isn’t absolutely useless. This is a good start. Good luck and I look forward to listening to your project.
Hm..This idea really got me thinking and so far I love it. I am not a Twitter user and I am part of that bunch of people who feel that it is pointless so I am very curious to see where this goes. I love how you are shedding a different light on Twitter showing how successful this website has become and how it really enhances the lives of people. I feel that you have a clear purpose (even though your idea still has some rough patches) and that there is a clear entertainment factor present. I think the idea of a conversation will keep your essay flowing and will greatly add to the entertainment aspect of your essay. Good luck, it seem like you’re on the right track to an amazing essay and I am excited to soon change my mind on Twitter.
I think you have a really cute idea. It fits in very nicely with what we’ve spoken about in class, because we’ve discussed the Internet at such great length. I think it’s a really good thing you are using Twitter as your subject – you have so many options where you can tweak it and make it work in your favor. You can give people a new perspective on Twitter. Your idea also sounds really good – I think you can make it very funny and dynamic by choosing which Tweets you want to read out loud. It sounds like you are going to produce a very interesting and entertaining video!