Twitter vs. Facebook

Twitter and Facebook have both relatively been around for quite some time..   but.. what's the real difference between the two of them?  In my opinion, Facebook is more of a networking site and allows you to release more personal information.  Twitter on the other hand, allows you to have a profile, not as detailed, and just allows you to post status updates.  Yet, both allow you to share pictures, videos, and "statuses" amongst your other friends and followers.  Facebook was a huge hit and is still very popular, but I will argue that Twitter is becoming more and more well-known as time goes on.  The great thing about Twitter is that it allows you to keep up with your favorite athletes, celebs, politicians, and friends.  Its a great way to see what people are up to!  If you haven't yet gotten yourself a Twitter account, I highly recommend it!!!!

Quick Tweets vs. Extensive Articles

Twitter is truly a revolutionary innovation.  Created only in March of 2006, it has changed the face of news dramatically in such a short time span.  It forces news producers to fit the significance of a story into only 140 characters.  In just six years, Twitter has grown to produce 300 million tweets a day!  As incredible as these numbers are, they are also scary.  We expect Twitter to act as our source of news/current events, when the reality is that Twitter can only give us so much information.  In only 140 characters, the reader cannot possibly understand what the story is about.  This could lead to some misconceptions about what the story is really about.  I am guilty of it myself.  A few times a day I scroll through my Twitter home page reading the titles of the articles, but I rarely click on the article to read it.  By reading the title, I feel like I know what is going on because I have "heard of it."  But the reality is, I have no idea what the story is about or any of the details.  Twitter does a really good job at getting readers to follow news producer's Twitters, but how often do you click on every article that interests you.  The whole point of Twitter is fast, short information.  Thus, taking the time read the article defeats that purpose.  It will be interesting to see what Twitter will become because of how much it has influenced over just the last six years.

Twitter says it themselves: "Quick, frequent answers to one simple question..."

Twitter's Facebook Similarities vs. Differences

I have talked to a number of people that have this expectation of Twitter being pretty similar to Facebook and not really standing out. Although I had this impression for a while, I recently began tweeting and have found it useful for a number of different things. It is easy to update, therefore easy to read what my friends and family are up to all day long. Also, you are able to follow your favorite celebrities. This is something different from Facebook because Facebook does not allow you to get near celebrities social page. However, Twitter allows you to read what their updates all day long, just like you can do with your friends. Even though Twitter is almost like Facebook statuses, it allows you to be more personable with other people, even celebrities, with replying and retweeting. The reality is that these two social networks vary greatly, and both have great things to offer! If you haven't already, give Twitter a chance! You might actually become addicted to tweeting, like me!

Is Facebook Taking Over?!

Let's face it, almost everyone has a Facebook page from 80-year-old Grandmas and newborn babies to one of my friends' cat. Many of us impulsively check our pages and update our statuses not simply daily, but several times, habitually, throughout each day. Some may log onto Facebook merely to chat with their friends while others browse Facebook marketplace or search through a band's page and listen to music. Facebook has evolved considerably over the last several years and it now serves dozens of purposes. Walgreens even recently added health advice to its Facebook page and other businesses are trying similar tactics to earn precious 'Likes' from Facebook users. (Story Here) There are not that many online 'needs' that the average person cannot fulfill by simply logging onto their Facebook page, which sounds great, right? Well, maybe. Is Facebook going to expand to such an extent that we rarely use any other source when we use the Internet or will it always be just the friendly blue site that we go to to see what our friends back in our hometowns are up to? Who knows what the future will bring, but do you think an expanding Facebook would be good or bad? Would it provide easier and faster access to what we want online or will it narrow our sources and even viewpoints?

With more and more people becoming acquainted with technology, individuals, especially younger ones, are more likely to open up their laptops or smart phone devices to check current news.  You don't find many students these days that prefer paying for a paper.  Most would rather catch up at their convenience.  In saying this, though Facebook started out as a means for communicating and promoting businesses, but  more recently turned into a digital newspaper itself.  Very frequently articles are popping up, whether it be on the side or main news feed, and viewers are actually paying attention.  In reality, Facebook is becoming a main educator about the news and individuals are becoming more involved with topics that are happening locally and worldwide.  Facebook allows articles to be not only posted, but shared by millions.  Most of these articles are very current and are keeping people involved, which in turn is allowing there to be a higher opinion response rate.  Many didn't expect Facebook to become a source of education, but in reality, it continually provides us with the news that we might have not heard elsewhere.


If you have any news articles or videos that you have stumbled across on Facebook, we ask you to please share them with us in your comments below!

Facebook vs. Employers

We've all heard people say it, "Be careful what you put on Facebook! Employers are always looking at that stuff..." When people say that, it usually means not to put pictures of yourself drinking underage or anything else illegal that could count against you while looking for a job. While this is all true, there is a new controversy happening. Not only do you as the Facebook account holder have to be careful with your privacy settings, but some employers are now asking for social networking passwords on job applications so they can personally go into your accounts and look at everything. With this new problem arising, Facebook has taken the next step by warning employers to NOT do this, and if they continue to do so, they will take legal actions against businesses and corporations. So, how far would you go to get your dream job? Would you give them your Facebook password, or do you think there should be a line drawn to not allow employers to do this? Check out the whole story below and give your opinion!

Employment Screening Resources

Facebook: Outgoing vs. "Facebook Outgoing"

What is the point of Facebook? A way to communicate with friends? A way to voice your opinion? A way to publicize your business? A way to procrastinate? This question has crossed my mind, and the minds of many others, on multiple occasions.  The point of Facebook is not clear, I suppose it is all of the above.  There is one aspect of Facebook that scares me though.  This is expressionism.  Some people are relying solely on Facebook to express themselves.  These people tend to be the least talkative in person, but the most active on Facebook.  Without naming any names, I know plenty of people that are like this.  This is one of the biggest concerns previous generations have for our generation.  We use texting, ichatting, and now Facebook to communicate with each other, rather than speaking face to face.  Facebook can give people the ability to hide behind this page of theirs and say whatever they want without having to say anything outloud.  There are even Facebook pages that say that texting and Facebook have somewhat ruined relationships.  Though some believe that Facebook helps insecure people come out of their shell, I think it puts them even farther in it. Don’t get me wrong, I love Facebook and use it daily, but I do think we need to be aware of the negative aspects of it.  People in our generation need to realize they cannot rely on social networks to express themselves.  Use your voice and the world will listen!