Social Media Project Twitter Paper!

Social Media and Public Relations Group 6 Social networking has been around far longer than just Facebook and Myspace. Social networking began many years ago with a program called BBS, bulletin board system. This program allowed users to go into a central network and share files and games, however it was limited to only the local community. BBS allowed file sharing via phone lines and modems, and it was expensive to make long distance calls. This was the first program used for social networking. Other systems such as CompuServe and AOL would redefine social media after BBS. CompuServe allowed people to join live forums and talk to one another. AOL was the first media outlet that allowed users to search for other’s profiles and create their own personal profile. AOL also allowed people to join chat rooms. People often call AOL “the internet before the internet” (Goble, 1). The most recent generation of social media has been defined through social websites such as Friendster, Myspace, and Facebook. These sites allow users to make a personal profile in more detail than ever before. Anyone can upload pictures, videos, and music while networking with friends, family, businesses, and potential employers. Facebook specifically helps people to show information about themselves and find other people that they are interested in. These sites often times lead to personal meetings and strong bonds of friendship or professional relationships. Finally, there is Twitter. Twitter is the most advanced form of social networking in existence today. Twitter is a real time update of the user’s life. Twitter uses only 140 characters for the user to type the details of their lives or give opinions of public discussion. These posts, or tweets, are then shown immediately to everyone that follows users on Twitter. Twitter is the most personal type of social networking out there because it literally gives followers up to the minute updates about peoples’ lives and allows users to comment on public forums about any topic at any time. You can follow different companies and organizations to see what they’re up to. This often can lead to great opportunities such as internships and jobs. The new talk about social networks is Twitter. Twitter is a free social networking service that enables anyone to post messages, known as tweets, to groups of selfdesignated followers. The tweets can be sent from and received by any kind of device such as a desktop, laptop, Blackberry, and cell phone. It is very similar to instant messaging or text messaging, but Twitter relays the message to several people at once, instead of just one. Professional news reporters have utilized this online tool to reach people where they are in real time. Although people are busy, they can easily access Twitter on their computers where they have access to exchange information on these networks. This is a way of bridging the gap with them and being more engaged with them. Twitter works best in situations where the story is always changing, where the actual media will not be able to report on the news as fast as someone who is on Twitter. Dan Gillmor says,

“journalists should view Twitter has a ’collective intelligence system’ that provides early warnings about trends, people, and news” (Farhi). According to Nielson Online, people ages 35-49 were the largest single group of tweeters. People older than 55 topped the amount of people who user Twitter between the ages of 25 and 34. Twitter is mostly used amongst professionals to communicate in real time. Twitter has become an integral part of today’s business world, politics, and mainstream media. Twitter has allowed the public to interact in real time with its clients. For example, politicians can discuss issues in real time with their constituents giving them an additional outlet to voice concerns. Twitter has also allowed the audience to participate in news broadcasts, allowing for interactive viewing. Businesses now rely heavily on social media, such as Twitter, to gather consumer opinions on product popularity. “Experts on social media emphasize that the most effective business professionals and entrepreneurs use online networking and content sharing tools. Companies use Twitter to enhance their personal brands, establish their expertise and credibility, and ultimately build the quality relationships that result in actual transactions: signing contracts, closing deals, and landing jobs, making real-world networking more productive, better targeted, and ultimately, more profitable”.(Graves, 6) PR Student Chat is an event that strives to bring the student and professional public relations community together for meaningful discussions regarding “the art and science of Public Relations”. The event occurs in the form of a live chat on Twitter, which allows public relations students and professionals to connect in real time. The event is moderated by Deirdre Breakenridge, the president of PFS Marketwyse. PFS Marketwyse works to help companies “widen their reach by blending the best of traditional and new media marketing”. The event is hosted by Valerie Simon, the Senior Vice President of BurrellesLuce. BurrellesLuce specializes in “media planning, media monitoring, and media measurement services”. According to Simon, “#PRStudChat offers students the opportunity to connect directly with industry leaders and educators in a new learning environment that brings together the academic and professional world”. In order to participate students or educators had to send a “tweet” to Valerie Simon requesting a three character “hashtag” assigned to the university. The hashtag is used in every tweet for tracking. Through the hashtag, the tweets are tallied and winner is declared. On October 21, 2009 BurrellesLuce offered students and professionals the opportunity to communicate freely throughout the country using Twitter Chat between 12pm- 1pm EST. This event allowed students and professionals nationwide to receive feedback to public relations questions while sitting in the comforts of their offices and classrooms. Students and professionals alike asked questions to gain insight from another outsiders’ perspective. Twitter forums such as these this are innovative since it provides users with innovative up-to-the-second updates of data, ideas, and sharing about any

given topic at any given time. The event had met its intended goals and purpose. Students and professionals were able to meet online and discuss issues tied to public relations. Students were able to post their ideas on their twitter accounts and would receive recognition on the page by using the hashtag #PRStudchat. Rider students were assigned the hashtag #RID to represent Rider University. Several Rider students had participated in the event to gain insight into the field of public relations. The event had hundreds of posts within the one-hour span from students and professionals all over the country. Some participants were NJ natives (the home state of the host BarellesLuce and PFSMarketwyse) such as us at Rider University, and Seton Hall University. Others came from places such as Florida, Alabama, Oregon, and NYU. People from all across the nation are able to participate in a way that could not have been done before. Social media such as this Twitter chat event allow different demographics of students and professionals to be connected and united through the online network. As with any new media outlet there are some glitches that need to be worked out. Because #PRStudchat was available to any user on Twitter people began to misinterpret its meaning. Certain individuals thought that #PRStudchat was an opportunity to meet hot Puerto Rican studs, which it clearly was not the case. Also Twitter has so immediate postings that it can sometimes be difficult to follow the trends. A person will respond using a re-tweet (RT) to a question posed and there will be three other posts simultaneously going next to theirs. There needs to be a better flow of organization. Overall this event was very informative and interesting points, articles, and questions were posted by all.

Works Cited BurrellesLuce. “Company - About Us.” Burrellesluce.com. BurrellesLuce, 2009. Web. 17

Oct. 2009. . Farhi, Paul. “Twitter Explosion.” American Journalism Review 31.3: 26-31. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. . Graves, Earl G, Sr. “Use Social Media to Enhance Face-to-Face Networking.” Black Enterprise 40. Issue 2 (2009): p6. Academic Search remier. Web. 20 Oct. 2009. Goble, Gord. "The History of Socail Networking." Digital Trends. Web. 18 Oct. 2009. <www.digitaltrends.com>. Johnson, Steven. “How Twitter Will Change The Way We Live .” TIME 5 June 2009: n. pag. google. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. . PFS Marketwyse. “About PFS Marketwyse.” Pfsmarketwyse-blog.com. PFS Marketwyse, 2009. Web. 17 Oct. 2009. . “PR Students, Professionals, and Educators Are Faced with the PR Student Chat Challenge.” Pitchengine.com. Pitch Engine, 29 Sept. 2009. Web. 17 Oct. 2009. .