by Kenneth Hofmann

Created on: May 11, 2011   Last Updated: August 06, 2011

Twitter and Facebook are seen everywhere nowadays.  Either in advertisements for business as to go "follow "or "like" a company ,to just catch up with someone or either admire those we see as our idols, heroes or favorite celebrity.  Now Twitter - much like Facebook - has changed the world and here are five ways the social media giant Twitter has changed the world.

1. Twitter has allowed news to travel throughout the world and allowing people to see it, digest it and as well give an opinion.  Twitter has almost allowed us all to become critics of the news of today.  If you're watching a great movie, just tweet "check this movie out"; if you're watching the president speaking, tweet "that was dumb to say "or just tweet that team you love just got a huge goal or score and you tweet your exuberant thought.  Now Facebook allows us to this too, but Twitter allows us to find others that we don't know but they are saying the same thing and the same thought as you. 

2.  Twitter allows us to get closer with those who we idolize.  Nearly any big celebrity or any big personality seen in media, sports movies or television, even authors, have their own Twitter account. It is just cool to see what a super star is thinking at a given moment and to actually say to them in Twitter form, that was the coolest thing ever! Now in the case of Reggie Bush recently he made his millions of followers a bit angry and in what other social setting can you make a million people dislike you within one tweet?

3.  Twitter allows us all to be mini entrepreneurs.  People can make money at just creating a Twitter account and having people follow them.  The television show "Sh#%t My Dad Says" all started with just a Twitter account.  People fell in love with the idea and it now is the premise of a television show that stars one of television's most iconic figures William Shatner.

4.  Twitter gets us to focus our thoughts. You know people tend to rant on Facebook with notes and long winding status updates.  However, on Twitter they really limit the users to be quick and to the point with a max of hundred and forty characters.  It feels like a pain at first, especially for someone to come from Facebook and then try Twitter, yet after using it for while it creates more clear and concise updates. We all don't have to be the "Ramblin Man."

5.  No matter what you are doing you can always see what's the big thing everyone is talking about at any given moment. Much the same Google and Bing uses technology to track what popular searches are on a given day. For example the day we heard Osama Bin Laden was found or the last time we saw Steve Carell in "The Office."  Now two very different stories but both were trend worthy for people to discuss for days afterwords, because Twitter knew that was what people were talking about, it's like you never feel out of a loop of social discussion.

In summary, those are five ways the world has changed because of Twitter.  Now not one point is really more important than the other but collectively it all just makes sense.  Twitter is making social history before our eyes much the same when the telephone was first invented. Quite amazing, don't you think?

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