Ah, Twitter. What’s all the fuss?, ask the majority of Americans who, thankfully, live Twitter-less lives. Yes, a billionaire took it over and is making people cranky by firing staff, bringing back banned accounts, and disbanding the laughably-named “trust and safety” committee. But what is that to our mostly-offline readers?

In the movie “The Devil Wears Prada”, the nasty girl boss played by Meryl Streep explains to the disheveled young intern that she never really chose the “lumpy” blue sweater she is wearing. Rather, through a series of market forces initiated by “people in this room”, Miss Intern’s sweater was “selected for her” by the powerful folks in Deep Fashion. (Well, what else could we call it?) 

So yes, Twitter does not occupy the thoughts of normal people, but it does influence the thoughts of normal people. Through the story-makers that populate the platform, narratives that fill the news often start on Twitter. Given that new documents are showing that conservative viewpoints have been pushed down for years, the news media ecosystem has reflected that. It is also evident that government agencies were given special privilege to flag posts that they don’t like and that the FBI was censoring information relating to elections. 

Misinformation is not our problem to fix, and the more time away from screens and in the Word, the better for you! But it is worthwhile to be aware of how the white noise filters, what messages are there, and how they change life around you. 

Before we leave Twitter news:
It is hard to know whether Elon Musk has a plan for his newest venture, and we certainly shouldn’t put our trust in tech princes, but according to Daily Wire, child pornography on the site is being rooted out. That’s awesome news.