The caller let me know in the first minute that he had “an off-the-wall question.”
No sweat. The Center gets lots of those, I said.
“So I am just trying to figure out if I should get onto Twitter,” he said. “I can’t see any reason that I need to.”
And as good journalists do, I asked him first to tell me why he hesitated to enter the Twitterverse. He had several solid reasons:
- Twitter isn’t really big in his town. He didn’t know if there would be an audience for his tweets.
- He said he was stretched too thin already. This was just one more thing to spend time on.
- And besides, he said, he doesn’t want to waste time reading small-talk or random comments or getting links to pictures of a dish someone had just cooked.
I told him those weren’t off-the-wall. We hear those objections frequently. And then I got his permission to pass along the advice I was about to give him.
Twitter isn’t big in a lot of small markets. But it’s bigger than you may think, and you’ll never fully appreciate what may be going on in Twitter until you begin to participate. Remember also that it’s not just the number of people who tweet in your community – there may be only a few, but those few may turn out to be great news sources.
On Twitter, you can be both a message-generator and a message-receiver. You can send out links to stories and you can share news as it breaks, so that you develop the reputation of being the go-to news source in your town. High school football games, fires, wrecks, city council and school board – all should be tweeted as they are in progress. Let your Twitter audience know you are there, and share the big news – and of course, tell them they’ll get more details on your website and in the newspaper. One good way to encourage Twitter use among your readers is to put the Twitter handle of every writer either under your byline or at the conclusion of an article (something like Twitter: @ClarkKent). Your Twitter handle should also be on your business card. And run some house ads that invite readers to follow your writers on Twitter.
My caller reminded me that he may have only a handful of people who would follow him. Of course, some of that handful may be community leaders and important news sources — people among whom you want to build your reputation of being on top of the news. And even if there are only a few, that number will definitely grow – and as new people get onto Twitter, they will be looking for local people to follow.
Remember, Twitter isn’t only for transmitting; it’s also for receiving. Let’s say you can find only a few people in your town on Twitter – but one is a high school coach, one is on the school board, one is in county government, one is a pastor, one is a teacher and one is a hospital administrator. Wow. If that’s all you followed, you would be following six local opinion leaders. And if each one tweeted only once a week, that’s maybe six news leads you wouldn’t otherwise have.
What about the time issue? Anything can eat your time – ESPN, mystery novels, video games, your garden. The reason most of us dedicated Twitter users spend time at the site is because we’re getting something of benefit. We’re learning. We’re getting ideas we didn’t have before.
He protested: “But I have seen Twitter feeds. There’s so much there. I know this one guy who can never read through his feed for even that day!”
“So? Do you feel guilty if you walk into a bookstore and see a shelf of great new books and you don’t immediately read them all? Do you feel guilty seeing 20 new books on the shelf and leaving the store without buying even one, knowing that you will never read even a fraction of what’s there?
“Of course not. If something really grabs you or looks like a topic you need right now, you get the book. Otherwise, you don’t read any of them. That’s the way Twitter works – you scan and skim and read what interests you.”
Actually, I explained, Twitter is a lot like having a good friend who works at that bookstore. You explain to your friend that you like Dan Brown-type fiction and Civil War history. You don’t care for nutrition books or world religion or science fiction, no matter how well they are selling. You tell the clerk you will come by the store once a day, and if he has any Dan Brownish-type stuff or Civil War history, to put them out on a table and you’ll look them over. And that’s what you do – just because the guy pulled a book on the battle of Gettysburg doesn’t mean you will buy it or read it. Some you look at, some you buy, some you actually read.
That’s the way Twitter works. You get an account and you find people and organizations whose opinions or information interest you. You scan your Twitter feed and follow up on what you find interesting or potentially useful.
If you miss a day, you don’t have to try to catch up. Does it bother you if you haven’t been into the bookstore for several weeks, knowing that there are great new books there that would be great reads for you as a reporter? No. You know there will be even more new books there when you finally stop by to spend some time.
Where do you start? Just sign on to Twitter – establish your account. Then find some people to follow.
The Center has set up a list of people and organizations that will be of special interest to Texas community journalists. Once you have your own Twitter account, go to https://twitter.com/thomason/tccj-twitter-list. Under the column “Tweets” on the right, you will see the people and organizations we recommend. Click on the name at the top, and you will be directed to the appropriate Twitter Profile. You will see a button on the right side with the Twitter logo and the word Follow. Click it. If at any time in the future you want to Unfollow a person or organization, go back to their page – the button will remind you now that you are Following. When you hover over that word, the word Unfollow will appear. Click it and you have taken that person or organization out of your Twitter feed.
Once you have established your account, the rest is gravy. Twitter will suggest other feeds similar to those you have followed. And the people you are following will re-tweet others who will interest you and you’ll end up following them yourself. Don’t be intimidated. Spend 10 minutes a day with Twitter and you’ll be a pro in a week.
You will also want to use Twitter’s advanced search feature. It’ll show you who has a Twitter account in your area and it will allow you to search for specific words. Click here for a one-minute video on how to use advanced search to find people on Twitter in your area.
After you get your Twitter account established and get a feel for the Twittersphere, check out the Journalist’s Toolbox for lots of additional Twitter resources and ways to expand your use of Twitter.
Twitter is a great tool for community journalists – and despite our caller’s fears, Twitter is a time-saver, not a time-waster.