Comments on: Twitter is my Newspaper: explaining twitter to newbies

By: Things then and now, part II

Things then and now, part II — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:13:40 +0000

[...] few months ago, David Eaves wrote that the best way to understand Twitter was to think of it like a newspaper vs. email. I know [...]

By: msmeme

msmeme — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:55:33 +0000

That's good. You are smarter than most.

I've got a shorter way to explain Twitter (it's like sex) - http://tinyurl.com/ygwebh7

By: Facebook User

Facebook User — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:43:08 +0000

Its amazing to me to see how many people fail to see the potential in Twitter and services like it. I usually use this link to show folks that Twitter is not just about what Kim and Larry had for lunch: http://twitter.com/the_pub_debates

By: Local

Local — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:40:37 +0000

[...] smiled because without even clicking the link, I knew where it went. I was right, and took a moment to re-read David’s post from three weeks back. I read [...]

By: The Glue Blog | Building appreciation for Twitter among the Non-Users

The Glue Blog | Building appreciation for Twitter among the Non-Users — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:07:25 +0000

[...] my Twitter travels I came across a great article that explains how to explain Twitter to non-users. According to the article, the mistake most [...]

By: David Eaves

David Eaves — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:49:43 +0000

Hi Rebecca – funnily enough, I came across The Twitter Times the afternoon after I posted this (or was it the next day). Was quite excited to see it!

By: Rebecca Wheeler

Rebecca Wheeler — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:22:23 +0000

What a brilliant analogy. I'm sure I'll be using it in the future to explain how and why I use Twitter to those that don't “get” it.

Have you come across The Twitter Times (a personalised online newspaper that pulls its content from your Twitter connections)? I think it's a nice example of just how accurate and relevant your Twitter-is-my-newspaper analogy is!

I wrote a blog about The Twitter Times that you might find interesting if you have time to read it: http://www.coastdigital.co.uk/whats-new/blog/20....

By: Larry

Larry — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:07:01 +0000

it's a social info feed :)

By: David Eaves

David Eaves — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:31:07 +0000

Kim, thank you for the post. I think you've taken my newspaper metaphor literally. I'm not saying the Twitter is a newspaper – I'm saying that it how people use a newspaper is a helpful metaphor for explaining how many people use twitter.

I don't disagree that it can be used as a means for participating in asynchronous conversations but in my experience (and observing others) this represents a tiny fraction of its use. How many tweets that come through your feed are part of a conversation you actively participate in 1-2%? If that? Moreover, asynchronous conversations is what email does – which is precisely why this use case is the worst way to explain twitter since people feel they need to read all their emails – they very opposite feeling they should have about tweets. Talking about twitter as a vehicle for asynchronous conversations – I suspect – increases misunderstanding about why the technology is valuable.

On a completely separate note – I also strongly disagree that newspapers provide dissonant opinions. At best newspapers are the vehicles for the bland – vetting opinions that will not offend or overly challenge anyone. At worst (and more common) they are ideologically focused and so don't provide diversity: you rarely see highly conservative views in the NYT or liberal views in the Wall Street Journal. I simply can't concede that newspapers offer more diversity than twitter. Indeed, quite the opposite. With a newspaper subscription you choose a perspective and are stuck with it. With twitter you can choose to subscribe to as many people with different and opposing perspectives as you wish. In both cases the choice is the readers – but the offering on twitter is much, much, much, more diverse.

By: Kim Feraday

Kim Feraday — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:08:53 +0000

OK it seems lately I'm always the dissenter on your posts. But using twitter as an information feed is useful but misses one of the most important uses — as a means of participating in asynchronous conversations.

The other point I would make with respect to newspapers is that if this is the only mechanism you use to get information then you're going to have a very myopic view of the world. There will be no dissonant opinions or new perspectives. That's one of the most useful services newspapers provide (at least until social search becomes a lot better). They vet other points of view and information that I might not go out of my way to find myself.