Is Travel on Twitter Getting Tired?

[Kaleel Sakakeeny]

Let me get my "conspiracy theory" out here first: Imperialistic, giant players like Google, Twitter, Facebook build  social nets to ensnare us into doing their bidding by populating them to an extreme, which in turn makes big bucks for them. Are we then willing tools of their master plan to do their bidding?

But to lighten up, it may simply be that I'm on social media overload. Or maybe I'm struggling to find relevance with the travel category in Twitter.
But when I look at streams on, say, #social Justice, I read things like how an educated work force equals a high wage economy, or how social networks may or may not have failed us.

When I scan the #medicine chatter, I read about gifts and payments to doctors needing to be more transparent. Stuff like that.

When I check in with #travel, it seems to be all about how many counties or continents someone has visited. How much someone loves to travel. The Top Ten of something (parks, bars, beaches, clam rolls), or the best picture of someplace.

I also wonder how many more "shoutouts" are possible.
Or "Follow Fridays."
Or "Travel Tuesdays."

I'm not being anti-Twitter or even anti-social. I love the tool. I think some of the tweets are incredibly funny and insightful. Many are even touching.

But I also wonder how a person can have, say, 30,000 or  47,000 followers..or some such huge number.
Why would they want that many followers?
What did they have to do to get them…dedicate ten hours a day to finding them?
And how does it matter?
Is it a question of bragging rights? Maybe getting a hotel upgrade?

So much of Twitter, or at least Travel on Twitter, is feeling repetitive. I wonder if travel allows for serious discussions about travel issues and values.

Then there's the mysterious increase and decrease of "follows" that I just can't get.  How does that happen?
Are people disagreeing with something that was said and therefore they "unfollow"?
Or are they looking for something else that one's Tweets don't fulfill, so they stop following?

Does it mean Tweets have to strive not to be controversial or provocative, a homogenization of ideas and observations that become predictable?
A popularity contents like we had in high school.
I guess  what's to disagree with. The Grand Canyon's beauty?

And of course, I'm a big offender myself.  I check my following-to-follow ratio. I do get a good feeling when something I post is RT'd or is it MRT'd?

But it would be satisfying to be engaged in something in the travel space that went beyond the joy of traveling, how often one does it or where someone happens to be or what they just ate on the road.

As I was saying: #Families "Are American ‪#families really sharing the workload at home? Men and women answer that differently: ‪http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/03/14/balancing-parental-load/ … from ‪@pewresearch"

Cheers

[Kaleel Sakakeeny]

Yes, I agree with you, Roberta, and thanks for disagreeing with me and writing in.

Everything you say is right..the tools, the lists, the fun of seeing who is who. But that begs the question: is the content valuable or just entertaining. Do the Tweets add to my travel insights or is it just fun to be in touch. Do the Tweets all begin to resemble each other or not. :)

Of course it's in the eye of he beholder, and this "beholder," while enjoying Twitter, is seeing a yellow caution light

Cheers and thanks again!

[Roberta Westwood]

Hey Kaleel,

I agree on Facebook, but couldn't disagree more on Twitter :)

Ignoring (silly) obsessions with #'s of followers and how often tweets are RT'd, I believe Twitter is very much what one makes of it. There is so much choice in what information you seek out, through hashtags, lists, who you follow - and just through exploration. I love finding someone interesting, then looking through who they follow... what discoveries!!

Twitter also has two very powerful tools: unfollow and block. I love the ease with which one can turn off the taps of what annoys.

An alternative that works too, is to have a separate Twitter handle or two, with a more narrow focus. For example, I use @crazy4picasso as a way to satisfy my fascination with Picasso, with a bit of other art and museums thrown in. I tweet on those topics, and only follow others who share these interests.

Just some thoughts...

Roberta (confessing to 7 or 8 Twitter handles:)