Twitter

Digital Media and Society Series

by Dhiraj Murthy

Twitter is a household name, discussed for its role in national elections, natural disasters, and political movements, as well as for what some malign as narcissistic “chatter.” The first edition of Murthy’s balanced and incisive book pioneered the study of this medium as a serious platform worthy of scholarly attention. Much has changed since Twitter’s infancy, although it is more relevant than ever to our social, political, and economic lives. This timely second edition shows how Twitter has evolved and how it is used today. Murthy introduces some of the historical context that gave birth to the platform, while providing up-to-date examples such as the #blacklivesmatter movement, and Donald Trump’s use of Twitter in the US election. The chapters on journalism and social movements have been thoroughly updated, and completely new to this edition is a chapter on celebrities and brands. Seeking to answer challenging questions around the popular medium, the second edition of Twitter is essential reading for students and scholars of digital media.

Genres: Social Media, Nonfiction, Sociology

264 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 30, 2012

Reviews

[Alexander Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good review of historic events along with distributions of Twitter's influence on public discourse. Although some of the theoretical framing of the data is questionable this book does its job. If you're pretty knowledgeable about how twitter and other social media functions mechanistically, this is more of a situational basis for empirical research.

[Mr L · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any twitter follower.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of observation, philosophizing and history in these few pages. It makes me want to read John Dent's play The Telegraph, or, A New Way Of Knowing Things, which is referenced at the beginning of Chapter 2. The play was written in 1795, which caught my attention, because the electronic telegraph was still in the future. I discovered that this form of telegraph was visual through relays from point to point, but also visible to anybody in sight of any of the stations to read what was being sent. Once I realized this "telegraph" had this peculiar characteristic, its connection to Twitter became obvious, but the author did not stress that fact.

References to philosophers could be somewhat misleading for readers unfamiliar with the age in which the likes of Kierkegaard wrote as a 1962 volume, not their original time frame in the first half of the 19th Century.

The book takes a close look at several areas in which Twitter feeds have been very influential: journalism, disasters, activism and health.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

An absolute must-read for anyone interested in the basics of Twitter and its impacts on culture and social interaction. With application of case studies to highlight issues in areas like health and activism, Murthy's Twitter explores not only how individuals are using Twitter, but also how those individuals can utilize the site to inspire or impact social change. Murthy's work can be used as an excellent foundation to further, more detailed research in digital communications.

[Laurel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is useful because the author provides an overview of much of the academic literature, to date, on the subject. There is not much new in this book for people who are frequent and long term users of Twitter.