As Twitter evolves into one of the top social networking platforms that over 200 million monthly users use, there grows a new definition of free speech. The application has become more popular with the explosion in population of smart phones. The list of users grows each day, therefore changing how people speak and obtain information on a daily basis. (The Guardian)
Twitter has become one of the leading methods of distributing breaking news. One of the most notable users is the US government. They use Twitter to deliver breaking news to the mainstream media. The government also uses twitter to stalk people who are suspicious of any crime. The NSA is even reported to hack into peoples accounts without their consent. Users start to question if the freedom of speech act is slowly fading away with the social network age.
Journalists and bloggers often create an account to distribute their articles through tweets. By doing this it hits a new area of readers. Not everyone has the time to surf the internet or read a newspaper. So Twitter gives people a chance to follow their favorite writers in the palm of their hand. (Twitter)
Another remarkable attribute is that it gives the ordinary person a chance to become an amateur broadcaster, without even having a real job. But some people take that privilege and use it to spam the Twitter newsfeeds. Some people make fake accounts with other peoples pictures and information. By releasing tweets that aren’t factual, it could actually be hurtful to the person’s image and very believable to the gullible reader. The explosion of Twitter over the last seven years has been more than anyone would have ever expected. As time goes on, the government invests more money into surveillance to watch over what people post. But with the government gathering more information from its citizens unconstitutionally, there starts a debate on what the future holds for our limited rights on freedom of speech.