Tag: twitter

Update Six

In preparation for our feature, I’ve been doing a lot of reading surrounding the hashtag phenomenon. From learning how teenaged One Direction fans are utilising the tool , to rants from the critics, to love letters from the fans, to the most basic of tips – if it’s an #opinion, I’ve read it.

Hashtag Comic by John Hart Studios/http://www.gocomics.com/bc/2013/01/10
Hashtag Comic by John Hart Studios/ http://www.gocomics.com/bc/2013/01/10

I personally use hashtags completely incorrectly, more as a method of commentary than to contribute to any actual conversation (except for my one true weakness – #TheBachelorAU), but it’s fascinating to see how hashtags are used by others to create these dialogues and actual change (or is it just the illusion of change?).

Hashtag Activism Comic by Eric Alive/http://churchm.ag/hashtag-activism/
Hashtag Activism Comic by Eric Alive/ http://churchm.ag/hashtag-activism/

I hope our feature will allow for some real exploration into the trend and it’s journalistic impact, outside of just #throwbackthursday and #selfie #nofilter.

Georgie

Update Three

Hi!

This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about hashtags (or should I say #hashtags?).

Hashtags have become a language all of their own over the past eight years , from their initial conception by Twitter (the below tweet by Chris Messina shows the very first usage) through to today, when every television show, album launch and concert has its own official hashtag that users can follow along and contribute to. Ultimately, hashtags allow for worldwide conversations, while also monitoring which conversations and hashtags are the most popular, on a local and global scale. This can be especially useful for marketing organisations, as it allows them to monitor and prove the popularity of branded hashtags.

Our guest lecture by Ariadne Vromen this week looked at the rise of online political activism. Hashtags are being used with increasing frequency by politicians and those wishing to contribute to the political conversation in an attempt to create change.

We’ll definitely be exploring this issue in more depth in our feature!

Georgie