Friday 13 September 2013

Twitter Fed


                                                                                                                                           Image from: http://blog.cityeats.com/new-york/2013/01/twitter-fed-the-top-5-food-tweets-of-the-week-2/



This week's reading and lecture looked at the topic of food in relation to social networking. I believe food has a very large impact on the social network of Twitter as it is one of the topics which is most talked about by users on the site. 

Kuttainen (2013) stated this week that “food may be seen as an expression of a person’s identity." Twitter allows it's users to post in conjunction with other social network Instagram; allowing pictures from Instagram to be shared on their Twitter profile. Users may even link the websites to each other so that Instagram pictures are automatically shared to Twitter as well; if you are curious this link discusses how to do this: http://www.twelveskip.com/tutorials/instagram/453/how-to-connect-your-instagram-to-twitter

A large amount of these pictures have something to do with the topic of food; for example a user might tweet photos at a new restaurant they are eating at for the first time, or of a new dish they attempted to cook for the first time, or perhaps of a food they are sampling from another culture for the first time. This can show their followers whether they like to try new food or not, what they do for leisure as well as aspects of their personality such as whether they are adventurous or like to play it safe.

An interesting point I observed this week whilst on Twitter is that the social network does not allow for advertising, unless it is tweeting by a person the user is following. Unlike Facebook and other social networks on which business' may advertise their products on certain parts of the page, Twitter gives no space for outside advertising in this way. This largely influences the way Twitter users see food products and food in general. Unlike Facebook and other social networks, Twitter users are not subjected to advertisements through which “the corporations that sell our food shape and constrain how we eat and how we think about food.” (Patel, R. 2007).  
The main, and usually only, way a Twitter user will experience food through the social network is through tweets from a user they are following or a tweet they have posted themselves to do with food.

References:

               Cabrera, P. (n.d.). How To Connect Your Instagram To Twitter | TWELVESKIP. Useful Tips And Resources For Internet Entrepreneurs - TWELVESKIP. Retrieved September 13, 2013, from http://www.twelveskip.com/tutorials/instagram/453/how-to-connect-your-instagram-to-twitter

                Kuttainen, V. 2013. BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narratives, and the Making of Place, Week 7 Notes (PowerPoint). Retrieved from: https://learnjcu.jcu.edu.au              


                 Patel, R. 2007. Stuffed and Starved: Markets, Power and the Hidden Battle for the world Food System. Great Britain; Portobello Books Ltd.  

Image Credits:

                   Levith, W. (2013). The Plate by Cityeats: Twitter Fed: The Top 5 Food Tweets of the Week. Retrieved from: http://blog.cityeats.com/new-york/2013/01/twitter-fed-the-top-5-food-tweets-of-the-week-2/

 

1 comment:

  1. Hello Rebecca,

    I liked your blog this week. I thought it was very well done and interesting. I did not know nor realise that Twitter did not allow advertising. I suppose that is a good thing, never having to worry about accidentally clicking on an ad then having to deal with the pop ups.

    It is a very strange fact that people take pictures of their food. I know they do it because they want to share their achievements or opinions, but seeing some of the pictures that people take is just torturous. Honestly, I don’t know how some people can have enough self-control in order to take a picture before devouring their food.

    But because people take these types of pictures, it allows you to see a portion of their identity through how they eat. If someone is continuously showcasing pictures of gourmet meals, then you can not help but think that either they themselves or their parent or partner, can cook, or the have enough finical success in order to eat out at luxurious restaurants every night.

    Happy writing

    Ayla

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