As soon as people learn that I teach courses in social media, they immediately remark, “Oh! Like that tweeting stuff,” or “I don’t understand the Twitters,” or, my favorite, “In two minutes, explain why I should get on Twitter.”  So, for my peeps and tweeps alike, here’s why I use Twitter.

1. Twitter connects me to others.
   People can find me (and I can find them). I’ve had excellent interactions with students, journalists, television personalities, authors, and other professors that I never would have had without Twitter.
2. Twitter engages my interests.
   Through Twitter, I am able to converse with, read, and learn from experts, practitioners, and thinkers in communication and in my specific fields of study: media technology, & society; education & instruction; and physical & digital spaces. Conversations abound on infinite subjects on Twitter
3. Twitter promotes my work.
   People that I have met using Twitter have become friends, guest-speakers in my classroom, clients for consultation, internship-directors for my students, and co-authors for publications. I discover new people, new events, and new opportunities almost daily.
4. Twitter makes me think.
   I am constantly trying to tighten my writing and create better tweets. Fitting thoughts into a 140-character limit makes me a better writer and teacher.
5. Twitter responds to my choices.
   I decide who to follow, how to follow, and when to follow the people who interest me on Twitter, and Twitter responds.

In short, Twitter is what we make it. If I have a television and never turn it on, I’ll be bored. The same is true for Twitter. I choose the channels that make sense to me, and follow the people who contribute to my conversation. And unlike television, on Twitter I get to talk back.