The Sun, the biggest newspaper in the UK, consistently sets the agenda for the mainstream media throughout the country and often abroad.
I remember being sat in the news studio of one of the biggest mainstream news providers at 5am, a while back, and asking one of the chaps what the ’stories’ were going to be that day. We were providing live chat services for their 9am show and thus needed to prepare some topics.
The producer chappy turned to me and said, ‘Depends if it’s a tits day or not,’ and walked off.
This left me slightly confused.
Another chap looked up from his desk and beckoned me over.
“This,” he says, “Is the newsfeed in from Reuters, right?”
Perhaps it was PA. I can’t remember.
Anyway, I see a whole ton of potential stories.
“And these ones,” he says, pointing to another list, “Are probably what we’ll be carrying.”
I nod, still a little bit confused.
“But we wait to see what The Sun leads with. If they’re having a tits day — that is, some girl splashed across the frontpage, then we’ll make it up ourselves. Otherwise we usually take our lead from them.”
Right.
So The Sun still sets the agenda for the mainstream press. And they’re talking about Twitter today.
When The Sun stats talking about Twitter in this manner, you now something is about to happen across the country:
That’s right. Forget Facebook! Say bye bye to Bebo!
Twitter is anointed.
The real challenge will be seeing if the mass of normobs out there ‘get’ the concept of ‘ambient community’. Facebook is easy to understand — similarly Bebo — but Twitter?
I think the vast majority will view Twitter as a way of interacting with (or really, ‘following’) celebrities — and use it for that purpose. We shall see.
