Monday, February 8, 2010

Facebook and Twitter: Legitimate News Sources?

Facebook and Twitter have revolutionized the way we view social interaction. These social networking sites provide a link of constant communication between individuals, friends, families, businesses and organizations. Users can update friends about what they’re doing, upload pictures and post comments.

But it’s not strictly fun and games (No, I’ve never played Farmville. I’m too scared I’ll get hooked). Twitter and Facebook have connected citizens to traditional news sources as well as to government officials. Status updates, event invitations and group messages communicate political information on a daily basis. So what may seem like aimless browsing on these sites can actually be enlightening.

Facebook, invented by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, is a social networking pioneer. The profiles themselves are informative as well as the various applications – fan pages, groups, messages and events. Politicians have capitalized on the popularity of Facebook, using it to gain support and trust from some of the over 350 million users.

Local leaders, including Chapel Hill Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt and the Town Council members (with the exception of Laurin Easthom and Penny Rich), have Facebook profiles.

Sure, it may be interesting to know that if Mark Kleinschmidt were a Greek god, he would be Zeus (according to the quiz results on his wall). But his Facebook also includes news about Chapel Hill, including status updates about emergency weather conditions and the dedication of a new community center playground. His Facebook comments about current policy-making, such as the passage of Kansas death penalty repeal bill by the Senate Judiciary Committee, give viewers further indication of his views on specific issues – views that will guide his future decisions as mayor. Finally, he updates users on national political decisions that will directly affect North Carolinians, like federal government’s high-speed railroad investment.

Politicians’ profiles can be particularly important during campaign season. From information on Facebook, voters can make decisions about which candidates they support. Student government candidates at UNC have wisely chosen to hop on the Facebook bandwagon. Exposure is everything. And what better way to get your face out there than on Facebook? Supporters have changed their default pictures to the candidates’ campaign images with captions that remind viewers to vote on Election Day. Candidate groups are even more informative, often listing platforms and updates on the campaigns.

Facebook groups and fan pages are also developing into reliable news sources. Fan pages for traditional media sources are my first choice for news on Facebook. National news sources are most likely to have pages with links to news articles and breaking news reports. For example, the fan pages of The New York Times, Fox News and CNN all included updates about Sarah Palin’s keynote speech at the first national convention of the “tea party” coalition.

Local news was harder to come by on Facebook. The Daily Tar Heel has a strong presence on Facebook – a DTH fan page and three groups. On the other hand, The News & Observer only has a group for past employees, which is not very useful for citizens who want to know more about local politics.

Event invitations are another great way to learn about on-campus happenings, such as the upcoming UNC A Capella concert to raise money for Haiti. The periodic messages sent out by event planners (although sometimes pesky) can be helpful reminders to attend and participate.

Twitter, the microblogging site invented by Jack Dorsey in 2006, resembles an RSS feed with updates from family and friends, news sources and even individual reporters like Anderson Cooper and Bill O’Reilly.

News sources have recognized the value of including links to articles, pictures and videos. Url shorteners like bit.ly allow them to post shorter links to make the most of the 140-character limit.

I prefer Twitter to Facebook as a news source because it’s more convenient. The updates about current events in addition to updates from my friends and family are all in one place. It’s fast and convenient – two qualities my generation values.

Facebook and Twitter have noticed the growing affinity for technology that is quick and simple. The sites have teamed up, further connecting users to one another. Facebook has an application called the Twitter exporter that translates tweets into status updates on users’ Facebook profiles. This allows people to spread news on two different sites at once, maximizing their audience.

The best part about these sites is that people no longer have to seek out news. Instead, news comes to them. Owners of smart phones (unfortunately, I am not one of them, ahem mom and dad) can check Facebook and get Twitter updates straight to their phone. Now that’s breaking news.

It’s also a two-way street. Traditional news sources not only increase readership through Twitter and Facebook, but they also get immediate feedback from their readers through comments and retweets.

News sources are capitalizing on this line of communication by asking readers for story ideas and input about articles. For example, the story idea for an article I wrote in The Daily Tar Heel about damages to Knotts Funeral Home came from a tweet from a former staff member a couple weeks ago. A tweet today from Newsweek also solicits users’ responses by asking them for their thoughts on the necessity of corporate layoffs. The catch? Responses must be six words or less. Talk about short and sweet.

Social networking sites provide us with some of the most up-to-date political news. Facebook and Twitter are the link between readers and traditional news sources. The sites also fuel discussion about current events among reporters and readers.

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