Social media entered our lives quietly and slowly, mainly in the form of Facebook. It was an exclusive club for those in colleges with the coveted email address that ended in .edu (that's how I got my start) and it became one of the most addicting sites on web. In between classes you'd find a computer on campus and check your Facebook to see what was up in the world. It was the CNN for college kids. Facebook has since become open to anyone with the ability to set up an email account, has spawned a movie, gained pretend worlds where people need pigs and chickens (still don't get any of the games people play on there), but has still been THE way to communicate.
As much appeal as Facebook still holds, Twitter has the become next big trend that won't die (lets not forget somewhere around the beginning of Facebook there was this thing called MySpace, but does anyone really know their password?). The key to making Twitter work is the fact that each Tweet it limited to 160 characters, just like a text message. This means you can have a sporadic thought and leave it at that. Then anyone who follows you can say their .02cents about your comment if they want. Often personalities in the public eye will tweet questions and reward correct answers with autographed stuff. I've seen people win anything from books to brand new Nike sneakers. Yes, a new pair of Nike's via Twitter. Go figure.
Since social media has become part of our daily lives, we have been able to connect with people that we will most likely never meet, nor probably would have had the chance to ever talk with. Thanks to Twitter, people feel like they know more about their favorite players and celebrities since we are more privy to their lifestyles. How else would we know that Coyote Paul Bissonnette is the resident team DJ or that Penguin Eric Tangradi is minorly addicted to Dunkin Donuts coffee?
The issue with social media is when it crosses the line. The NFL has had to address players tweeting from the locker room and instituted a policy that prohibits the use of social media from 90 minutes before kickoff till after the game is over. Shockingly more leagues haven't set forth a policy but I won't be surprised when they finally do.
With over 4,000 athletes from all sports currently tweeting, no one can follow them all. The best way is to find a few that truly interest you because you like them or their team, or have funny things to say and go from there. They area always retweeting friends who just so happen to be celebs and athletes. Two of the funniest and most random people to follow @BizNasty2point0 and @rainnwilson who are seriously off their rockers at times. You can find out the true verified accounts of athletes here. Most bloggers also have accounts and it's fun to see them go back and forth with others.
Thanks to Bissonnette's unfiltered approach to life, he is currently tweeting from his second account after shutting down the first after some rather controversial tweets. He has since found a filter in the form of his agent and the people of the Coyotes which is probably good. He's also obsessed with the homeless and giving back and has managed to turn this strange love into a way to give back through selling t-shirts with proceeds benefiting shelters. Of course we can thank Twitter for my knowledge of this thanks to countless tweets and articles that have been tweeted about this. It all comes full circle.
Sadly Twitter also is a way to find out some not so good news. I follow CNN Breaking News and have basically kept up on the news this way. They link you straight to articles on their site from around the world. Riots in London, bad weather, soldiers dying overseas. It's strange to read the headline in 160 characters about what has happened. Twitter is truly what you make of it. I follow all sorts of people/organizations that range from my favorites athletes and teams to magazines and a person who tweets about reality tv and the outfits they wear. Go figure. Through twitter people you don't know come alive. You find out who loves Vegas and who loves going to shows. It's a strange world, but rather interesting if you figure out what you want to use it.
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