Who Do You Follow on Twitter?

I enjoyed reading about which Twitter accounts students follow, from athletes to actors to artists to... authors? I was very impressed! Anna talked about how Twitter allows her to combine her interests for young adult writers and social media. She can follow many people in both industries to stay informed on the newest apps/services/technologies and the latest releases in the publishing industry. Then there are others like Sophia who are still adjusting to the idea of letting down their digital guards. A common theme that I noticed throughout many of the blogs, including hers, was that students first began by only following friends or people with whom they are in close contact. The more they used Twitter, however, the more they branched out to follow politicians, celebrities, CEOs and other newsworthy people/organizations. Twitter's full potential is not realized until a user opens the conversation up to a vast majority of people.

After reading who everyone follows I actually went and followed a few of the ones mentioned! It really amazes me how connected Twitter keep all of us at all times. It gathers all of the information I need into one place and dictates my thoughts and behaviors. In the morning I check The Weather Channel news feed to help me pick out what I will wear that day. Later I check the specials of the menus offered at my favorite eateries in town to determine where I will eat lunch. Then at night I will keep tabs on all of my Real Housewives of New Jersey cast mates who are live-tweeting the episode so I can more easily decide whose side of the latest Jersey drama cat fight I am on. I can do all of this by scrolling down a single web page, a web page I have tailored to my personal interests. Sheer genius!

Who Do I Follow on Twitter?

I use Twitter to follow people/organizations whose whereabouts/thoughts/activities I care to know about. Celebrities, athletes and comedians are fun to follow for entertainment purposes. Politicians and news agencies keep me up-to-date and informed about current events. Lehigh programs let me know what's going on around campus and remind me about upcoming meetings, speakers, sporting events, etc. I may want to attend. I mainly started following non-profits as part of the assignment; I do not follow any non-profits on my private Twitter account. Other than that I follow friends and professors, several local Bethlehem businesses and a few other accounts such as Web MD (in case of an emergency!) and The Weather Channel.

Celebrities:
Ashton Kutcher
Mariah Carey
Britney Spears
Kim Kardashian
Beyonce Knowles
Oprah Winfrey
Justin Timberlake
Katy Perry
Steve Carell

Political:
Joe Biden
Paul Ryan
Barack Obama
Mitt Romney
Bill Clinton
POLITICO

Non-profits:
ArtsQuest
Penn State University THON
American Heart Association
Habitat for Humanity
Clinton Foundation

News sources:
Lehigh U News
Wall Street Journal
The New York Times
The Morning Call
The Brown and White
PBS
BBC
Reuters
FOX News
ABC News
Political Zap

Lehigh programs:
Lehigh Greek Life
Lehigh Business Careers in Entertainment Club
Lehigh Athletics
Lehigh Gamma Phi Beta Sorority
Lehigh Lacrosse

Other:
Loose Threads
Horns
LV with Love
Students
Professors
WebMD
The Weather Channel

PBS - Tempo InDepth

As the President of the Business Careers in Entertainment Club, I am always trying to plan new and exciting speakers, networking opportunities and field trips for our club members. This morning we took a field trip to the local PBS station at the Steel Stacks to sit in as the live studio audience at the filming of the Emmy Award-winning news program, Tempo InDepth. Students from several schools in the area were also in attendance for the segment, which was a 60-minute special on Diabetes. Upon arriving at PBS we took a tour of the facilities led by a Lehigh student interning at the company. It was interesting to see all of the high-tech and brand new equipment used to film and produce the show. Then it came time for the taping of the program and we got to witness all of the behind-the-scenes action.

I often struggle with how to increase attendance and participation at BCEC events. BCEC is how I scored two out of my three internships, and has helped me improve my resume, fine-tune my interviewing skills and kick-start my professional career. We provide students with so many unique opportunities that I can never understand why one would pass up a chance to expand their minds and try something new. It irks me that students will include BCEC on their resumes without ever having gone to an event. I guess that's what happens when I spend so much time and effort trying to help other students and get nothing in return! But this is just me venting (sigh). The trip to PBS was extremely fun and a great way to connect with a local business. I'm thankful that PBS was willing to partner with us and I will continue to reach out to the community to find ways to connect students to the entertainment industry.

Happy New Year

Yesterday at sundown marked the start of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Ever since I can remember my entire familywould congregate at my cousin's house in Westfield, New Jersey - grandparents, aunts, uncles, girlfriends, boyfriends, neighbors - come one come all, the more the merrier. The moment I walked through the door the smell of brisket and matzah ball soup warmed my soul. The magnificent table was filled with Jewish delicacies: lox and cream cheese, chopped liver, Manischewitz wine, gefilte fish, kugel, just to name a few. My aunt always outdid herself when it came to feeding our family.

Sitting down at the dinner table was the first time many of our family members had seen each other in months and months, and boy did it show. There was anything and everything to talk about from school to friends to work, and always that heated (and dreaded) conversation about politics. Then came time for the prayers, and each person would take a turn reading both the Hebrew prayer and English transliteration. It was always gratifying to see the proud look on my father’s face knowing I had transformed from a little girl staring blindly at the Hebrew alphabet to effortlessly reciting prayers and reading passages.

Growing up, Rosh Hashanah and all of the Jewish holidays were a common thread that linked my entire family together. Rosh Hashanah in particular is one of the more uplifting Jewish holidays that wishes us a sweet new year, symbolized by the dipping of apples into honey. Relatives from all different walks of life would fly in from across the country to be together on this special night. As we got older, one by one, the dinner table became smaller. A cousin would graduate, an aunt would move away, a grandparent would pass on. My sister Madeline, the youngest of all the cousins, is now a freshman at Syracuse University. She was the last one of us to sit at the dinner table. As I spoke to my parents on the phone this morning, I could tell in their voice that Rosh Hashanah was not the same as it used to be without all of us there to share in the festivities. Having what was once such a big part of my life, now become a part of my past, pulls at my heartstrings. It is a grave reality that I am getting older, but also a hopeful promise that in the not so far future I will be sitting around the dinner table once again celebrating the Jewish holidays with a family of my own enjoying good food, good friends, good family and good memories.

Getting into the Swing of Things

My first observation when reading everyone’s blogs was that many students have already formatted their pages with background pictures, designs, fonts, etc. I seem to be a little behind the times… But hey, I'm still learning!

I liked reading Loulou's blog and hearing her analogy equating Facebook to a reunion in which you can check up on a long lost friend or family member’s photos and see what they are up to. I also agree with her assertion that Twitter is better for gathering information and crowd sourcing. Ask a question, and you receive feedback in minutes. Want to know the score of a game? Scroll up on your feed for the latest ESPN play-by-play tweets.

I can also appreciate Kyle's concerns about privacy and transparency in this day and age. He mentions that his Twitter was originally public, but due to random friend requests and spam alerts he made it private. He also references how celebrities have faced criticism and backlash for offensive tweets on their pages. This teaches the important lesson of using discretion when utilizing social media today. Whether you are posting a picture on Facebook containing alcohol or are tweeting about your inappropriate happenings from the night before, you must always remember that anything and everything you put out on the web is there for all to see.

Many of the other blogs brought up similar points as I made, as far as students sharing their experiences of using Facebook and Twitter. I look forward to continuing to read other students’ blogs and giving and receiving feedback about our pages.

Facebook vs. Twitter: Battle of the Social Media Moguls

Facebook and Twitter are undoubtedly two of the most widely used forms of communicating and sharing information in society today. Despite their many similarities, however, the two social media platforms differ in many ways.

I have come to find that Twitter is my place to dabble and have some fun. I can make a funny joke or post about what kind of mood I’m in without worrying if anyone is going to take what I’m saying too seriously or if my grammar is perfectly correct. The people I follow on Twitter reflect this mentality, most of who are friends, family members, comedians, etc. I find that my Facebook usage differs slightly. Anything I post on Facebook, be it a comment on a friend’s wall or a tagged picture, I know will stay there forever. It is a timeless page that now, thanks to Timeline, allows you to check back on your high school days when I still had braces and was being carpooled around by my parents. In other words, I am much more careful and mindful of my Facebook content than I am my Twitter.

My experience using Twitter is mostly on my phone in on-the-go situations. Rarely am I sitting at my desktop reading my Twitter feed. This changed when I studied abroad in London last semester and had next-to-no cell service, and was forced to use the computer as my main consumption of Twitter. In doing so, however, I mastered many of Twitter’s features, primarily the hashtag. This came into play during the Lehigh vs. Duke game when #Lehigh and #LehighbeatDuke trended. Never before had I felt so connected to what was going on around the world on an international level. Even though I was on a different continent I felt like I was in the streets of Bethlehem chanting Lehigh’s name with the rest of the student body. In my experience, Facebook does not have that same affect. It would not have allowed me to see what all of the NCAA viewers were saying about the Lehigh vs. Duke game, only what my friends on Facebook were saying. Twitter has no bounds for dialogue and conversation. Facebook does.

Recently I’ve noticed how Facebook and Twitter have become interchangeable and impact each other’s usage. Shortly after Facebook introduced the “like” button, Twitter came out with a “Favorite” option. Many of my friends also utilize the hashtag on Facebook (a feature introduced by Twitter) when it comes to a picture or wall post. Not to mention the entire creation of Twitter made obsolete the need to make status updates on Facebook. And both allow you to link to friends, companies and other accounts with the “@....” option in order to expand your network and get others involved in the conversation. Clearly Facebook and Twitter play off of each other’s strengths based on their audience’s wants and needs.

Professionally, Facebook and Twitter have done wonders for companies trying to expand their business. Twitter allows companies to quickly and directly respond to customers’ requests, questions, suggestions, etc. It also allows them to advertise promotions, post photos and retweet. If managed right, Twitter can increase participation and engagement of its followers to get feedback that helps them improve their business and potentially increase sales. In a similar and possibly more effective way, companies on Facebook can reel in customers by posting pictures of new merchandise and advertising a current sale going on. Also, the ability to “like” and “comment” on Facebook content allows viewers of a company’s Facebook page to see a certain post that may be receiving a lot of activity and jump on the bandwagon and “like” or “comment” on it as well. Overall, Facebook and Twitter have changed the way businesses do business these days by adding an entire new dimension to the field. Whether you like it or not, Facebook and Twitter are here to stay so we might as well take advantage of all they have to offer.