The Bowdoin Orient

Dismissed by many as a glorified Facebook status update, Twitter has proven to be a powerful social media tool for some students at Bowdoin.

Some merely use the popular interface for recreation, others use it to communicate important information to a larger audience, and even others advertise and forge business contacts by way of Twitter's 140 character messages.

Within the Bowdoin community, Twitter exposes students to a range of current happenings on campus. Looking at the handle @bsgpresident, run by John Connolly '11, students can read things like, "Have an opinion about Meatless Mondays? The organizers will be talking to BSG Wed. night at 830 in Daggett. Stop by to share your opinion."

Various other student groups can also be found on Twitter. Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere (RAKE) uses the handle @ourkindness, Bowdoin Athletics tweets on @GoUBears, WBOR at @wbor and The Bowdoin Orient can be found at @bowdoinorient.

It still seems, however, that the majority of students do not use this form of communication due to a lack of interest in what microblogging has to offer.

"I see it as mainly status updates, and that was my least favorite thing about Facebook. No one needs to know what I'm doing at every second," Noelle Schoettle '13 said.

Phoebe McCarthy '11 added to this sentiment when she said, "I don't like to know what others are doing all the time."

Initially hesitant about the social media platform, Sam Waterbury '11 began using Twitter about two weeks ago.

"I think that there is a stigma against Twitter," he said, "because people tweet about whatever is happening around them which is self indulgent and not interesting. I avoid doing this [though]."

Waterbury currently uses Twitter to communicate with other members of his a cappella group, the Longfellows, and for personal communication.

"I'm amused by Twitter. I think it's a funny thing that's happened with society, and I think it's a funny way of communicating with people," Waterbury said.

"People have been saying that Facebook is a place where people you know post useless information," said Houston Kraft '11, "and Twitter is a place where people you don't know post relevant information."

"The core of this," continued Kraft, "is that Twitter is a place that allows you to share with people who have a common set of interests."

Kraft, who has used Twitter in a variety of capacities, currently works part time for a company called Cotweet, which helps companies track and analyze what people are saying about them and their product. He also is an avid user of Twitter, checking and updating his five handles eight to 10 times a day. He currently has accounts that he uses for RAKE, his personal blog, an independent study on comedy, recreation, and for an iPhone app project that he is working on with a couple of his classmates.

"Twitter is now a platform for customer service, brand promotion, social sharing and academic engagement. The digital age has promoted creativity," said Kraft.

Most of the creativity seems to stem primarily from conversations between users rather than from individual updates and ideas.

"The majority of my time on Twitter is spent reading about others and reacting to what they have to say," said Waterbury. "I think it's more interesting to have conversations and interactions with other users, rather than to have an idea."

Hannah Wright '13, takes a more intermediate stance on the merits of Twitter.

"It's personal gratification knowing that what I say is out there," she said. "My roommate and I have a joint account and we like to follow celebrities that we're both interested in."

Wright has been using Twitter for several months, and reads and updates her feed a few times a week.

When asked whether or not they recommend that their peers begin using Twitter, people gave mixed answers.

Kraft answered with a strong yes, citing the connection that Twitter can foster between members of the Bowdoin community, as well as beyond it.

"People will pay attention to you if you have something relevant to say," he concluded.

Waterbury, on the other hand, was more hesitant in his praise of Twitter.

"I would recommend it assuming [students] know how to manage their time," he said. "Twitter is another distraction in our lives. Like all forms of social media, it is a poor substitute for real human interactions."