Last June, massive anti-government demonstrations that happened in Iran spread through this new medium all over the world. In July, massive bloodletting in Urumqui in China was news through this outlet twelve hours earlier than foreign news media. One can feel truly the great power of this medium.
This medium is Twitter, which has grown far faster than any others. It has 50 million users all over the world. Twitter is a Micro Blog Service in which one writes less than 140 letters. The name means the singing of birds. Between Following (a person who you want to be related to) and a Follower (a person who relates to you) is a relationship. Its core service is providing links through writing. The core of its content is people's experiences. Users can hear and post from the day-to-day happenings to a major event in the world instantly.
Twitter is so easy to use. After a simple sign up, Follower and Following should form a connection. Users can click user's ID left by others' Twitter or follow to find wanted people through Find People Menu directly. While you are searching a celebrity and your friend on the search bar and their Twitter shows up, you should apply for them. From cyworld's minihomepage, we can 1chon with them only if the application and 1chon acceptance are done there. By contrast, Twitter allows you to form a connection by one side applying, and then the following's contents appear on the follower's page.
Recently Park Joong-hoon and actor Kim Min-sun cleared up their thinking about 'The Mad Cow Disease is potassium cyanide' through Twitter. In addition, Kim Yeon-a, the figure skater, has started Twitter and attracted netizens' attention. Celebrities from every part of society are jumping onto Twitter. Politicians have started to use Twitter as well. The way that they use Twitter in politics is to post a quick response about Following. It's not an active means of communication as of yet, but they are planing to communicate with the mass of people, expressing a point of view about policy, writing a story day earlier than at other times. And it is a reflection of the world of politics changing.
Roh Hoi-chan, a representative of Newjinbo, a political party, said, "I am likely to talk with the people in a square." He is a heavy user of Twitter. "With Twitter, different from a blog and a cy-world, you can communicate directly. All communication happens quickly from one to majority or majority to majority fast." He said that it can be unfamiliar at first, but he felt its effectiveness as a communication means when he was meeting citizens.
Users said, "It is a good way to make English a part of your life. Different from other media, Twitter makes fun and easy the writing of a short diary entry."
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However, Twitter is not well-known compared with Korean blogs and cy-world. Also, users may find it hard to use because it uses only English. Moreover, it costs 20 won per text message, which is a disadvantage.
In Korea the internet service M2day is like Twitter. M2day attracts many people for things that Twitter lacks, such as 'reple" (adding to reply). How about giving Twitter or M2day, a new communication means, a try
By reporter Park Yi-seul
hakbopys@donga.ac.kr
October 9
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