Last Friday, I received an author’s copy of Twitter viestintänä (Twitter as Communication). This is an anthology featuring 22 authors, with a topic of great interest to someone who’s Twitter-active. I eagerly picked out some noteworthy points.
1) People active in Finnish politics and journalism form a particular virtual elite. Most journalists in this charmed group come from major media companies, while the politicians belong to the National Coalition Party and the Greens. (Iiri Ruoho’s & Jaana Kuusipalo’s article)
2) Direct contact between citizens and politicians increases confidence and promotes the healthy functioning of the system. 161 Finnish MPs – 80% of the total – are on Twitter, but there is only a small number of discussions, and even then, mainly with other representatives, not with ordinary citizens. (Mari Marttila)
3) Live tweeting during electoral discussions mostly deals with substance. The public hoped that politicians could keep their talks concrete and realistic. Tweets dealing with the personalities of the party leaders seem to reflect public opinion well. (Pekka Isotalus & Laura Paatelainen)
4) A hashtag launched by an organization can be hijacked by others. Businesses created hashtags for their branding and campaigning, but if the organization’s message is in conflict with user experience, people can and do harness the hashtag for negative communication. (Mia Virolainen & Vilma Luoma-aho)
5) In communication guidelines for Finnish cities, Twitter is linked to interacting with residents, but in practice it’s used for one-way messages. Twitter, however, fits public conversation well, and the interaction helps to turn government jargon into plain language. (My article)
6) Journalists use social media extensively to collect ideas, information and sources. The logic of mass media and the logic of social media are interlinked so that individual journalists apply the logic of social media, while media companies implement the logic of mass communication. (Janne Matikainen & Mikko Villi)
For more interesting Twitter information, read the book.