If you've been a user of Twitter for any extended period of time than you know that trending topics are the "what's happening and when" of the popular social network. Trends include hot topics about what everyone is watching (Grammys) to the major news of the moment (Egypt). But more and more, certain topics are sounding like something picked from a round-table discussion at the family reunion. For example, #blackparentquotes or #ifsantawasblack. Subjects that appear to be created by and targeted toward African-Americans have become so frequent that they were given a nickname, "black tags". But why are #blacktags so popular you may ask?
Well, a recent article on rollingout.com cited a study from Edison Research's Annual Report saying...
Although black people comprise about 12 percent of the general population, they account for 25 percent of the population of users on Twitter. As a consequence, they tend to follow celebrities and post more trending topics. On Twitter, for example, young blacks follow more people, retweet more often, and reply to posts more frequently causing certain topics to rise in popularity that have nothing to do with breaking news or information.
Since this report, many articles have sprouted up online condemning Twitter's black culture for their lack of "consciousness" with regard to trending topics, and suggest that users are in need of a wake-up call. Indeed there are many opportunities made available through the use of social media and there is something powerful to be said about the influence of black culture on Twitter. However, though 25% might start a topic, its not enough to keep it going if no one else catches on. Nonetheless, many are saying African-American users are not taking advantage of their wide influence.
Trending topics like #ghettobabynames have become the norm, but what many don't realize is that social media can often provide a safe space for hate, where bigomists, racists and the like can promote their values without reprimand. And they do. Many of these individuals use racially aimed TT's, that were perhaps intended for comedy, as ammunition for their corrupt values. Discussing the differences between black and white parents might be of normal comedic conversation between friends, but when broadcast to millions of users without understanding of the context, the conversation and the message becomes diluted and can get lost fairly quickly. I had to learn this the hard way.
But while the topics on twitter largely consist of subjects representing an unfavorable depiction of black culture, I have to disagree that African-Americans aren't at all using their voice on twitter for ANY good. Afterall, it was their voice that led the social media campaign to bring back yet another wrongfully canceled black sitcom "The Game" after two years off the air. Other more positive topics that have trended include #mlkday to commemorate Martin Luther King's birthday and #unsung a TV show honoring black superstars who's stories were never told. Ultimately, they are using their influence to raise awareness about subjects that otherwise would not reach beyond the consciousness of African-Americans. However, I believe that this is only scratching the surface. The more positively skewed topics that do become trends lack the depth of other trending topics related to socio-political issues, and trend far less often. There is so much more good that can done and my hope is that black users begin to utilize their influence to bring about positive changes.
The issue with this mission, is that for one, how does Twitter determine the ethnicity of their users? It isn't requested when signing up for account. I only assume by the nature of the content that the trending topics are started by a black person, but how can this be proven? Furthermore, users would need to be on one accord to spread knowledge about what's going on in black communities across the US and worldwide. But the truth of the matter is that social media has different uses and gratifications for different people. Some use Twitter to get news and information about the world around them, while others use it to spread information. And then are those who have less strategic uses for Twitter and simply view it as a leisure activity. And any user can employ a variety of motives for Twitter use at any time. So, I guess my question is how does this change occur?
Yes, the foolishness needs to stop, but will it? Who knows.
What are your thoughts?
