Twitter, the magnifying effect of information

Faster than others, used by all media, the strength of Twitter is to have become a benchmark in the art of spreading news.
At the heart of a human system, which has made information its fountain for youth, Twitter has become a pillar of this edge of ultra-connectivity. Each time users navigate Twitter, they discover and rediscover the strengths of this social network and its incredible ability to convey information in real time. Each member has the feeling of joining a much wider circle of humans who are ultra-informed and know everything that happens at every corner of the world.
Each member is constantly immersed in the heart of news. They feel closer to events by reading texts, viewing images or videos, wherever they are captured. They would first feel like they may be at the heart of the system, then at the core of an atom’s nucleus, or like they would be in an electron among many others that is revolving around news to spread it.
A multitude of signals
As long as signals emit a sufficient background noise, social networks will constantly amplify them. Like waves breaking multiple times, tweets emerge again when they are retweeted by enough users. As they are capable of promoting events, companies, people or information to the forefront, the system can also practice the scorched earth policy and burn the element that would be contrary to its usual flow or that would not respect its rules.
In the XIX century, the Swiss writer John Petit-Senn said: “We look through the magnifying glass for the qualities of those we love and the defects of those we hate”. The principle of permanent observation has remained invariable in modern social networks, we scrutinize and comment on everything. By multiplying the visibility of every fact, social networks reflect that humanity in which everything is shared and spread. Each user assumes the role of actor and observer of this huge game board where the material exchanges within the limit of 140 characters.
Distortion of Reality
In this environment, news is scrutinized and then digested and dissected. Every event affects society, sports events, or anything that can generate a limitless flow of exchanges, are put forward. Everything is done so that masses spread the unique and important element by obtaining more visibility. The user can find other possibilities but always has to be really attentive of everything. Even the media can mislead and convey false information.
Donald Richard DeLillo, an American writer, thought that “In a crisis the true facts are whatever other people say they are.” The magnifying effect of social networks can generate these distortions of reality that mislead the readers. By juggling the rules, some reinterpret what Yvan Audouard, a French writer, thought: “Information plus a denial, it creates two pieces of information for the price of one. And it is always the fake one that remains in our memories”. On Twitter, as elsewhere, you should never forget to take a step back to avoid being misled.
Holding a role
By being an actor, the user broadens their range of possibilities and gives up their role of propagator. By changing their position, they seize the opportunity to communicate otherwise and to spread ideas. Winston Churchill thought that “It is better to be making the news than taking it, to be an actor rather than a critic”.
More involved in this role, the user can take advantage of the effect of the magnifying glasses to try to redirect users towards their tweets.
The role of system enhancer plays in their favor if they offer relevant content appreciated by their readership or allowing them to be a more powerful link of a community.
Gaining experience, being involved and proactive in social networks will change step-by-step the user perceptions and angles of view. By contributing, they reinforce their role as a node of passage in their network and benefit from the many exchanges that are created around their contnet.
Faced with the multiplicity of all the elements which constantly integrate the system, they also participate in the diversity of exchanges generated there and fight the inevitable forgetfulness which reaches all the elements that are shared, for “Said Pierre Joliot-Curie, a French biologist,” Faced with the explosive growth of information communication techniques, our brain’s ability to acquire, store, assimilate and transmit information has remained unchanged “and social networks did not change our ability to absorb ever more information. At every moment, the magnifying glass allows everyone to zoom in on the information to be extracted and remembered … for a time…
Alban Jarry
Blog : https://albanjarry.com/about/
Linkedin : https://fr.linkedin.com/in/albanjarry
Twitter : https://twitter.com/Alban_Jarry
Translation with Sophie Perrin
