In recent years, social networking has skyrocketed and has become insanely popular, mostly among teens and young people. First there was MySpace, then Facebook. Now there is a new way to share with the world: Twitter.
Twitter allows people to create their own personal accounts and, in 140 characters or less, post comments about what they are doing and speak their minds on whatever topics they please. Most users add posts several times a day; with the option to post pictures and videos too, we often see more information about people than we should. Now it has become more popular because people don’t have to sit at their computers to use it – Twitter can be accessed wirelessly through Blackberrys and iPhones.
Twitter also happens to be vastly popular with celebrities, who are definitely large advertisers of the site. I think one reason people are so fascinated by Twitter in the first place is because of its heavy use by celebrities. They might think it is cool to know what Kim Kardashian, Lindsay Lohan or John Mayer (all of whom are big Twitter users) are doing right up to the minute. Having my thirteen-year-old brother tell me he “made a Twitter to follow athletes” showed me that people really do make accounts solely to follow celebrities.
Twitter can be okay when it comes to just sending shout-outs, hellos or brief niceties, but there are some people who just go too far and even get a little weird. We really don’t need to know that you just took a bathroom break, that you might take a nap or that the burrito from Taco Bell you just had was awesome!
Personally, I choose to not use Twitter. I see it as ridiculous and unnecessary. Of course I tell my friends and family what I’m up to each day, but the whole “Twittersphere” does not need to know. It isn’t natural to let people know what we are doing every minute.
It is because of social networking (especially Twitter) that people do not have true privacy anymore, and they are doing it to themselves. Why would people post play-by-plays of their days for tons of other people to see? Honestly, who cares? People need to realize that if they stopped posting every aspect of their lives online, things would be much simpler.
Yes, positive things can come out of Twitter, but it creates room for negativity and drama as well. Life is already busy enough without that added outlet. If you have an issue with someone, talk to him or her, don’t tweet it. By putting their ideas out there, people are making themselves very susceptible to attacks. This doesn’t stop them from becoming obsessed and continuing to do it.
So what is it that draws them in? Are people so self-centered that they think others really care that much? I suppose so, because I don’t see any other reason to join Twitter. So I have to ask, with this new generation of social networking and Twitter, is nothing sacred anymore? You can decide for yourself, but please, there are just some things that should really just stay private.
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