Comments on: Celebrities Are Not Taking Over Twitter

By: Free to follow (or not) on Twitter | Socialmedia.biz

Free to follow (or not) on Twitter | Socialmedia.biz — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:48:09 +0000

[…] Twitter because nobody is forced to follow celebs — or anyone — on Twitter. Please read Celebrities Are Not Taking Over Twitter for the rest of the below insightful excerpt: Celebrities like Ashton Kutcher, Shaquille […]

By: spicycauldron (The Spicy Cauldron)

spicycauldron (The Spicy Cauldron) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 10:36:00 +0000

Twitter Comment

Celebs not taking over Twitter (but we knew this already): [link to post]

- Posted using Chat Catcher

By: Chuck Hemann

Chuck Hemann — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 21:00:25 +0000

no problem, and thanks for doing the great post. That is a positive outcome from this “saga” that I hadn’t really thought of.

Though, I don’t think consultants could walk into a boardroom and say Oprah and and Ashton are on Twitter…why aren’t you?

By: adam

adam — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:35:33 +0000

Spot on Chuck - You said it with a lot less words than I did. I was inspired by a newspaper article interviewing people who were concerned that celebs had taken over and that the masses joining twitter will ruin it.

The one subtle impact beyond the additional fail whale sightings is that this could bring in a lot more legitimate users - not just the folks who want to follow Oprah. In that sense I think it’s more positive than neutral. Thanks for the comment!

By: Chuck Hemann

Chuck Hemann — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:38:49 +0000

Perhaps I’m a bit jaded, or just feeling cranky (it is Monday after all), but I fail to see the point of this debate. Oprah is on Twitter. So is Ashton Kutcher. So are a bunch of other celebs that are using Twitter as a broadcasting mechanism and not as a way to initiate conversations with like-minded individuals.

If it is their choice to join Twitter and do that why should I care? I am not going to follow them because I’m using Twitter to talk with like-minded folks. If the “masses” want to join Twitter and follow Oprah, who are we to say that they shouldn’t?

If Oprah and other celebs have any impact on Twitter it will happen on a macro level. It will probably help to further the push to make Twitter mainstream (if it isn’t already). But I don’t think it will impact my experience on Twitter, or yours, or anybody else’s (with the exception of seeing the “whale” a few more times).

By: Akhia (AKHIA)

Akhia (AKHIA) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 14:35:39 +0000

Twitter Comment

Celebrities Are Not Taking Over Twitter. Do you agree? [link to post] (from @adamcohen)

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By: Angela Connor

Angela Connor — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 03:02:53 +0000

Strangely enough Adam…I’ve found that I don’t care very much at all about celebrities being on twitter. I was thinking about the Oprah thing just last night while I was working on a press release for my upcoming book and a few radio pitches to generate early buzz. I was thinking about the sheer number of people who would join as a result of Oprah introducing her gazillion viewers to twitter and how a great deal of them wouldn’t get it or begin to understand the power of an active twitter network. Great post, Adam. Way to put it all in perspective. Now I will blast this to my tweeps so they can read it and get this great perspective for themselves.
Angela Connor | @communitygirl

By: SwiftTweet (TweetGirl)

SwiftTweet (TweetGirl) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 14:42:06 +0000

Twitter Comment

Celebrities Are Not Taking Over Twitter | :: a thousand cuts :: adam cohen's blog [link to post]

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By: dekonstruct

dekonstruct — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 03:03:58 +0000

Tweetdeck FTW. I’m a big fan. I’m also quite guilty of starting a profile only to have one post and never use it for anything ever again, but I have learned the error of my ways. Twitter search helped me a lot when looking for a Job in Buffalo. It’s like google blog search only faster and more relevant.

By: adam

adam — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 22:44:05 +0000

Thanks for the comments all - good thoughts here. I want to address a key point - celebrities will be celebrities. They are celebrities because they are broadcasting - the fact that some are choosing to do so on Twitter is really inconsequential. Ashton, Demi, Ellen, Oprah and others are making a buzz because they are trying a new technology, but they were already making a buzz. So, now some are doing that on twitter - big deal. There are some impacts though. There will be a ‘bandwagon’ effect, but many celebs (as Ari points out) and new joiners are taking it a step further to engage the community on Twitter. Those folks get it - and I would hope benefit from it more than the others in many ways. The celebs who do so are providing a level of access that is nearly impossible to achieve on any other platform.

Len - great feedback and analogy of the magazine rack. I agree with both of your points too about us ‘normal’ folks working hard to establish followers. I’d take 10 engaged followers like yourself over a thousand spammers - no question. Its a balance of short term gain with long term value. On your other point on people feeling like Twitter is being ruined - I need to finish my other blog post about “What if everyone you knew was on every social network?” The ultimately goal of these networks are to be ubiquitous as the telephone or TV. How we use them may evolve, but at least it should be easier to find what you need or who you are looking for - and those that benefit from the “newness” of something unique on these platforms will fade.