I joined Twitter in 2008 and have mostly enjoyed it because I don’t try to do things ‘a certain way’ there. But over the last year or so, when I check in on Twitter all I see are links to posts on how to do things better. “Nine ways to make the most out of every weekend.” “A guide on how not to upset your boss.” “Five things you should never do when using Twitter.” And everyone is sharing them because they come from credible sources. Hey, if Huffington Post says something, it must be true. No, serendipity and authenticity are dead there. Twitter has evolved into one big link engine. And the sad thing is that 95% of all links shared either contain regurgitated copy from somewhere else on the web, or, when it’s an attempt at original content, it’s so disorganized that you’re not sure what you’re reading. And so when you write and share something fresh – like poetry, or fiction, or a general rant that doesn’t follow a template – no one notices. It’s too dangerous.
I have a plan. And I have to keep Twitter alive because of the plan. But mostly it’s a dead channel to me in terms of a place to find cool new people to meet (like it used to be.) I just don’t have the patience for that anymore. Especially since most of these people are sharing the stuff mentioned above. But I keep it alive because of the plan. Not unlike how I still post to Linkedin because of the need to make a living. And how I use Google+ for its SEO juice. Which leaves Facebook and my 193 friends there as the place where I can still be myself and not feel silly about it. Sure, Facebook is still a data collection engine (they all are) that tries to make privacy settings confusing to the advantage of the advertisers, but the interactions I have there are sincere. None of my friends are trying to sell me anything or tell me how to live my life better. Ok, maybe there are a few people trying to do that there – Facebook’s not Xanadu, after all.
***
Will Conley
Apr 27, 2014
Lately I’ve been using Twitter as a sort of methadone to the heroin of Facebook — a way to ease the transition away from the instant gratification of seeing and being seen on the Web. That said, yep, Facebook is where it’s at these days if you want to have legit interaction with people. Twitter is, comparatively, a ghost town.
JK
Apr 28, 2014
You can unfollow Twitter accounts, just to note. If they’re tweeting things you don’t like.
Jim Mitchem
Apr 28, 2014
Hey thanks, man. I had no idea.
Molly Block
Apr 28, 2014
😉
James
Apr 28, 2014
I see where you’re coming from, but Twitter has been an invaluable tool for interacting with people that I don’t really know or who do something relevant to my interests that I would like to know. Facebook is for friends and family – it just feels weird to send somebody I don’t know a Facebook request. It feels much more comfortable to Tweet somebody. I know the Twitter users you’re referring too but I find them easy tune out. Even though I follow over 3,000 people I never see their Tweets because I’ve created lists of a few dozen to a few hundred people who I “really” want to follow.
Jim
Apr 28, 2014
Hear. Hear. Or, as the kids still sometimes say, “Word.” (Though it’s not fair to tell us of a “plan” and not tells us about it. Or is this blog an old time serial, where you’ve shown us a shotgun on the wall on today’s episode only to use it on tomorrow’s episode?)
Ian
Apr 28, 2014
I joined in 2008 too, and notice the same change. I’m on all day for work, but enjoy it less and less for personal stuff. I used to love watching a football game with a 1000 people I never met, or tossing ideas back and forth. I’ve met a ton of really smart, interesting people I never would have otherwise- including you. It was a serendipity machine. Now, not so much. Lots of talking, very little listening. Tough to get a conversation going about anything not marketing. I have a feeling about your plan, and it makes sense. I have similar reasons for staying in there. See you on Facebook I guess.
Mike McBride
Apr 30, 2014
Don’t leave us Jim!
Google+ Isn’t Dead. It’s Just In A Coma And On Life Support.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/25/google-plus-dead_n_5212819.html
Mercedes
Apr 30, 2014
I do love this post and I agree on many levels. But it’s still worth noting that while some are abusing Twitter with overdone buzzfeed lists and tips on how to market to millenials, (I’ve been guilty) it has still become my very own ‘newspaper’ full of the authors, opinion leaders, brands, artists, and friends that share valuable information relevant to me at that time–while Facebook has become a cesspool of complaints, memes and baby pictures that serve absolutely zero purpose in my every day. Twitter has this power over Facebook and that’s why I spend my whole day on it and haven’t logged into FB since December. Just my opinion though, and everybody’s got one. <3
Jim Mitchem
Apr 30, 2014
And that’s exactly it – Twitter wasn’t always a news feed. And I guess I just got lucky vetting the right people on FB because they’re real relationships. To me.
Mercedes
Apr 30, 2014
I guess when I say ‘newspaper’ I just mean that when my favorite t-shirt designer comes out with a new graphic, I hear it first on Twitter, or when Stephen King says that some show is worth watching, I see it, and then I watch it, because well, it’s Stephen King. I have real relationships with some of my FB friends, but I save them for coffee dates and phone chats. I prefer the people I don’t know on Twitter who share industry knowledge that is worth reading and sharing, over the kid I haven’t seen since high school telling the world he just got his car fixed or that there’s more sauce on the tombstone pizza he’s eating because he felt that was sharing an update about.
Jim Mitchem
Apr 30, 2014
Yes, once again it comes down to how one uses each channel. For example, I have no friends on FB from High School. I don’t even have any family there. I’d venture to guess that 50-60% of my relationships on FB were originally fostered on Twitter. People I’ve never even met in person but who I rely on to be ‘real people’ and not just a news feed of the latest content produced by big media companies. I am more curious about people and experiencing life than I am the news. Again, that’s just me. And it’s been my experience that for most people Twitter has evolved into an RSS feed from the pool of serendipity it used to be.
Mike McBride
Apr 30, 2014
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/04/a-eulogy-for-twitter/361339/
Jim Mitchem
Apr 30, 2014
The irony of that coming out today after I wrote this on Sunday is not lost on me. Well, at least I was right.
What killed Twitter? Three little “innovations.” | Will Conley
May 1, 2014
[…] buddy Jim has recently noted “the death of Twitter.” A few days later, The Atlantic wrote a eulogy for […]
Daniel
Jun 7, 2014
I too mourn the passing of the Twitter that you and Will talk about. After all, I met the two of you there, and numerous other people who — though still unmet in the corporeal sense — I count as true and dear friends. RIP Twitter, until the fiendishly smart Jim Mitchem Twitter 3.2914 plan is implemented at least. (But no pressure, Jim.)
Dreamer @skeftomekegrafo
Aug 30, 2014
well doesn’t all of the above depend on who you follow?
Jim Mitchem
Aug 31, 2014
to a degree. but people tend to act the way others act. with the influx of marketer-think here, more and more people act like marketers. which means there are less and less good people to follow.
My novel – Minor King
Recent Posts
Copyright © Jim Mitchem. Hosted by Command Partners.