How Twitter And Other Social Media Can Effect Real Life Changes
There are still people who don't believe that the power of Twitter extends beyond the internet and the users of the network
. But in the last few weeks various events are proving that Twitter and social networks can be very powerful tools for spreading messages that can affect the lives of people.
Take the case of the Iran protests- If it weren't for Twitter and all the other social media, other nations would have been largely unaware of all that was happening in Iran after the Iran elections. There have been many instances wherein people found useful information on Twitter or wherein client concerns were immediately addressed by companies. One example of this happening would be what happened to Adam Savage, the TV host of the TV show Myth Busters when he received a billing from At&T for his mobile phone.
Savage spent five days in Montreal Canada in early June and used his AT&T carrier to connect to the internet using a mobile modem. When he returned to the US, that's when he discovered that the company is charging him $11,000 for his usage of the line to connect to the internet. That's when Savage went on his Twitter to let his followers know that he was having problems with the phone carrier. Savage simply posted "AT&T attempting to charge me 11K for a few hours of web surfing in Canada". Within a few hours his message has spread over the network and by the end of the day, AT&T had freed him of all obligations to pay the fee. This shows how a simple tweet can reach the right people and help affect actions and decisions. Many users are now utilizing the social network for various meaningful purposes such as raising funds and gaining support for good causes.
But just as Twitter has the great power to spread good news and valuable information online it also has great power to spread misinformation. The fact that social networks are very open and everyone can post anything online means that the social media can also be prone to abuse.
Last week celebrity blogger Perez Hilton received criticisms for having posted a message on his Twitter when he was allegedly beat up by someone from Will i am's group. People couldn't understand why instead of calling the authorities himself, Perez decided to tweet about the incident and asked his followers to call on his behalf.