The world’s communication media are transforming so quickly that soon the tweets of bird species will be drowned out by the collective tweets of Twitter. As with any technology or mode of communication, Twitter is neither inherently good nor bad. Rather, the application and related effects are the means by which we can assess the value of Twitter. In fact, Twitter is proving to have positive and negative aspects, as was the case for radio-telegraphy aboard the Titanic on her ill-fated maiden voyage.
In negative terms, Twitter is wasting time, conditioning a subpar use of language and promoting the transmisson of piffle. Celebrities and ordinary souls alike are describing minute-by-minute the most banal events or choices in their days. Often we spot these obsessed Twitter users as they clench phones and stare intently at tweets. Are they discovering or creating anything profound? Unlikely.
However, all is not lost in our universe of tweets. Recent disasters or near disasters have demonstrated that the concise, mass communication of Twitter is an effective and reliable means of transmitting messages, especially when other communication methods are interrupted; wireless internet through hand-held devices is less prone to damage than conventional phones or cable-based communication.
It is interesting to note that in the wake of the recent B.C. earthquakes the B.C. government has decided to use Twitter as an effective means of warning residents and officials about the potential of an incoming tsunami. Moreover, the recent experience along the eastern seaboard of the United States proved just how useful the rapid, mass flow of news from eye-witnesses using Twitter could be.
A Blog on Adult Education by Derek Richer 