A tweet for a change

Are you “Twitter-pated”? What does your tweet say? How far can your 140 characters go?

These are just some of the queries that come to mind every time we talk about social media—Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, Wordpress, 9Gag, Pinterest and so much more. These are questions enough to tickle our fancies this morning, ladies and gentlemen! Today, we’ll explore a nook of the social media universe, the one where a tweet is not just a simple tweet but a ripple of change.

Twitter is a fast-paced medium where you can post anything, from trivial things like what you’ve just eaten, where you’ve been, the movie you’ve watched and of course your ‘obligatory’ daily selfie … or on the other hand, you can show your participation to various social movements like the Earth Hour where you can show your love for Mother Earth through using the hashtags, #TheEarthNeedsYou and #TurnOffTheLightsForOurEarth. Twitter’s randomness has its own pros and cons, depending on how we utilize this power because one tweet can either unite us or break our social grounds into pieces.

They say Filipinos dominate the Twitter universe, we like to post our activities and in the age of globalization, we have been using this democratic platform as a weapon to mobilize, cooperate and let our voices be heard. When the news about the siphoning off of our public funds (our money, by the way) courtesy of the ‘Queen’ Janet Lim-Napoles, spread out like wildfire, tweets about condemnation, damnation, dismay and calls for reforms flooded and continue to flood Twitter. This was the time when the hashtags #FeelingNapoles, #KatkatQueenNapoles, #CorruptionIsMoreFunInThePhilippines and the legendary monotonous response of Napoles during a Senate inquiry— #HindiKoPoAlam. Twitter has witnessed this trending topic discussed by most, if not all, Filipinos in the

sphere of social media. In a way, it has become our tool to demand for transparency and accountability.

As Max Gladwell said about social media, “What's most profound is that these represent parts of a greater whole. They represent a shift in power from centralized institutions and organizations to the people they represent. It is the evolution of democracy by way of technology, and we are all better for it.”

Aside from the former, compassion, hope and love flocked on Twitter when the Supertyphoon Yolanda lashed across the Visayas that had caused the loss of thousands or lives, devastated billions of infrastructure and livelihood and curtailed the dreams of many. The international community also poured in their support in rebuilding the ravaged areas. Donations and pledges were lodged in different social networking sites, using the Tweetsgiving App, #PHRedCrossDonate, #YolandaPHDonate and many more. A rundown of celebrities such as Rihanna, Ashton Kutcher, Ellen, Oprah, Anne Curtis, among others used their “social influence” in Twitter to ask for donations.

Citizens, activists, leaders, students, artists , from Hollywood to Bollywood, from the deserts in the Middle East to the Nordic regions, together we made a difference to other people and one thing we have to be thankful for is the existence of Twitter or social media, in general for bringing us closer, defying differences and distances. We have heralded social media to spark change in the way people, organizations, and governments interact with each other. These campaigns have shown the incredible potential of social media platforms to let us dream of better, more efficient ways to connect and allow us to reshape how we think about our world and ourselves.

This is the era of social media, of smartphones, of Instagram, of Twitter, of Youtube. This is now our power— a power that lies at the tip of our

fingers and in the lenses of our handy cameras. But as any kind of power, it demands responsibility and clever choices. When you’re going to post using 140 characters, will it be for good or for the destruction of others? Will you post as a “selfie” person or as a “selfie-less” Filipino using social media as catalyst of change? I will leave you these questions to ponder, feel free to tweet your answers and use the

hashtag #English17SpeechClass2014. Good morning and have a great day ahead, ladies and gentlemen!