Comments on: Twitter is a communication tool, not an information source http://joeldowns.com/2009/06/30/twitter-is-a-communication-tool-not-an-information-source/ Product management in media and tech Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:52:07 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: joel http://joeldowns.com/2009/06/30/twitter-is-a-communication-tool-not-an-information-source/#comment-146 joel Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:17:14 +0000 http://joeldowns.com/?p=185#comment-146 Also, for actual emergencies, I *hope* that authorities would first turn to tools like the Emergency Broadcast System which, being on every TV and radio station, has a much better reach than Twitter. Also, for actual emergencies, I *hope* that authorities would first turn to tools like the Emergency Broadcast System which, being on every TV and radio station, has a much better reach than Twitter.

]]> By: joel http://joeldowns.com/2009/06/30/twitter-is-a-communication-tool-not-an-information-source/#comment-145 joel Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:14:16 +0000 http://joeldowns.com/?p=185#comment-145 I agree completely that the *information* you can get through Twitter can be extremely useful, but my point is that it's still just a medium. You could have been getting those updates through a blog, an email list, a call list (popular at schools), or a message board somewhere, and if more public officials were Internet savvy, that would probably already be the case. Twitter is just a convenient new way for that information to be distributed. I agree completely that the *information* you can get through Twitter can be extremely useful, but my point is that it’s still just a medium. You could have been getting those updates through a blog, an email list, a call list (popular at schools), or a message board somewhere, and if more public officials were Internet savvy, that would probably already be the case. Twitter is just a convenient new way for that information to be distributed.

]]> By: Helly http://joeldowns.com/2009/06/30/twitter-is-a-communication-tool-not-an-information-source/#comment-144 Helly Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:05:15 +0000 http://joeldowns.com/?p=185#comment-144 I replied to your Tweet about this post (heh), and I have to elaborate-- while I do agree with your post for the most part, I also wanted to point out that during Santa Barbara's recent Jesusita fire, Twitter became an invaluable source of key updates and emergency information. Yes, about half of it was merely linking to official news and county websites, but more often than not, we received updates via Twiter BEFORE those official sites were updated. People were out there, in the thick of it, watching, listening to scanners, speaking to their connections with emergency personnel, regaling us with firsthand experience of their own (or their friends') evacuations, etc... and updating us accordingly. Granted, this situation and usage of Twitter was probably the exception to the rule, but it was pretty awesome to witness, anyway. And shows that in some circumstances, Twitter CAN be used as more than a mere "communication facilitation" tool, despite its limitations. I replied to your Tweet about this post (heh), and I have to elaborate– while I do agree with your post for the most part, I also wanted to point out that during Santa Barbara’s recent Jesusita fire, Twitter became an invaluable source of key updates and emergency information. Yes, about half of it was merely linking to official news and county websites, but more often than not, we received updates via Twiter BEFORE those official sites were updated. People were out there, in the thick of it, watching, listening to scanners, speaking to their connections with emergency personnel, regaling us with firsthand experience of their own (or their friends’) evacuations, etc… and updating us accordingly.

Granted, this situation and usage of Twitter was probably the exception to the rule, but it was pretty awesome to witness, anyway. And shows that in some circumstances, Twitter CAN be used as more than a mere “communication facilitation” tool, despite its limitations.

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