Journalism Next by Mark Briggs Chapter 4
“Microblogging: Write Small, Think Big”
Microblogging is the fastest way to get the news. On Friday, February 12, 2010, when the DC Metro Red Line derailed the place that was reporting it within five minutes was Twitter. 140 characters can really say a lot.
Especially when newspapers pay people to find out the news and people on Twitter just do it, and they do it faster. For journalists this can be made into something amazing. Even with a lead to a story and you can get feedback to or a link to a possible story line that you are getting feedback immediately.
With microblogging the audience is developing “ambient awareness” says Briggs, [it] allows for one-to-many communication”. This is important because the audience doesn’t have to work for their information anymore. It just comes to them.
Microblogging has created “Real-Time Web”, which allows people to find out what is going on at all times. We have become a world of constant updates.
The audience can now see the journalist’s process and makes it more transparent, so the audience to only responds to the story, but with the writer as well. The best part for journalists is that they can become closer to their audience. Now they will know what their audience wants to know and creates audience interaction.
We all know those people who constantly update with nothing to say. Mark Briggs has a solution for that the 80-20 rule.
“Follow the 80-20 rule:” says Briggs, “On a personal microblogging account, use 80 percent of your psots to add something of value to the community…The other 20 percent of the posts can be self-promoting”.
Blogs are a great tool, but it can be a little intimidating to send your words out to everyone in the world, microblogging can be a little less daunting.
Brigg’s Tips for Microblogging Language
- Post: write only 140 characters
- Read: read the messages of the people you follow on your homepage
- Reply: on someone’s page if you want to reply just click the reply button or write “@username”
- Direct Messages: click “Direct Messages” and use it as if you were going to send someone an email
