The Stereotypes Of Twitter: Part 1
Much like non-digital society, the world of Twitter can be boiled down into sub-groups of cookie cutter personalities (or at least I’m hell bent on doing so.) In real life, you’ve got your posers, your gangsters, your scene kids, and your cheerleaders. We on Twitter have our own set of lovable stereotypes to shove into a predetermined personality box.
The Stereotypes of Twitter is a series of posts which I hope will be three parts long. Hopefully I can rack my brain for more of these clear stereotypical personalities.
1. The Pot-Stirrer: This is the tweeter who is always trying to cause a ruckus. You can usually point out these community members by their “I’m the best in the world” attitudes, which is clearly a compensation for some other void they need filled in their lives, (or they are just really cocky, but ultimately funny.) A perfect example of the Pot-Stirrer is 1938 Media’s Loren Feldman, who has launched a series of “puppet sketches” where he imitates legacy man, Shel Israel (at one point he even had a fake username set up to poke fun at Shel,) and more recently, Mike Arrington of Tech Crunch.
2. The Lonely (and Sometimes Horny) Thirty-Something Housewife / Single Mom: (Editor’s Note: This stereotype doesn’t seem to be as prevalent as I originally thought. Wishful thinking maybe?) One thing that 1938 Media’s Loren Feldman had right is his view of the demographics of Twitter. Twitter is absolutely FULL of lonely housewives trying to get their game on (though there are some exceptions of stay-at-home moms which are really fantastic people.) Whether it be because the geek demographic of Twitter gives them the flirtation that these women’s dead beat husbands don’t provide, or just because they’re trying to get their game on without their boyfriends knowing any better, the lonely housewife / single mom demographic is nice chunk of the Twitter community.
3. The Shameless Self-Promoter: Jason Calacanis…
Ok, no but really. The Cala-Man as I like to call him is a great example of the shameless self-promoter stereotype on Twitter, even to an extreme level. Going to the point of offering an expensive MacBook Air to your 20,000th subscriber might be a great way to let the follows roll in, but damn, if you would talk about something other than your follower count, that would be fantastic. The Shameless Self-Promoter never mentions anyone else, unless it is to make themselves look better, and half of their Twitter content is probably links to something about themselves or how fantastic they are.
I probably fall somewhere between this one and the first stereotype.
4. The Follow Snob: These are the Tweeters that limit their following numbers to strictly A-Listers, people with over 600 followers, and close family. In fact, their own family members might have a tough time making the cut. You can call Henry Rollins a follow snob, even though he’s more of a bad-ass than anything. And even though Hugh MacLeod of Gaping Void fame is following almost 900 users, he goes on these blocking sprees. I was a little surprised when he blocked ME for using Twitter how I feel it should be used… socially. I admit, I made a snide comment about his age, but it was totally tongue-in-cheek. Now? Blocked for good.
5. The Unobtainable Chica: These unobtainable Twitter harlots are the ones which are so unique, so cool, so intelligent, and/or so damn hot that users are either intimidated to talk to them, or try to talk (and hit on) them too much. Great examples of the unobtainable girl are Meg Fowler and iJustine.
Hope you enjoyed my first set of Twitter stereotypes. What’s the fun of a community if you can’t have some fun pigeon-holing an entire demographic? Stay tuned for The Stereotypes of Twitter: Part 2.
Filed under Tech, social |7 Responses to “The Stereotypes Of Twitter: Part 1”
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Oh I love stereotypes :-S So being a 35yo single mum I must fit the horny category right? Oh and stay at home? Most of the 30-something female twitter pals I have hold down jobs, are doing the start up thing and lead very fulfilling lives.
Now to find a way to quit my job and stop studying so I can “get my game on.” Thanks for the heads up. I knew my life was missing something.
I haven’t seen these MILFs on twitter yet. Maybe i’m missing them.
I’m so #3 (@solacetech) !!! I didn’t know about the housewife thing, that’s crazy…
I add Twitter showman - Robert Scoble @scobleizer.Great shows,sometimes.
what makes you think it is a stereotype?
just for the record after 21 accounts and a scraper named Panopticons, Meg Fowler and the transgendered Amanda Chapel let me follow. Sometimes being a jerk has benefits. Except then I realized the Meg Fowler is actually really annoying if you actually follow her. They just might be “Manon”, because there was nothing worthwhile to actually listen to. Sad but true lesson. These ladies don’t like followers because they don’t want you listening to themselves talk about boring redundant things in life. It isn’t being a snob that makes them elitist, it is they’re vanity of letting people smell they’re dirty underwear. I don’t know why Meg Fowler does this on twitter… but I guess habits are hard to break. If you ask her I’m sure she will say I’m a jerk, but I’m willing to bet based on the psychological profile of Meg Fowler that she probably dated a lot bigger jerks then I am. I just don’t buy the creepy complaint.
Case in point is iJustine, who regularly lets me draw on her facebook profile, where thousands of young girls are… (jailbait) and yet will never follow me back on twitter. I get girls trying to friend me all the time for just one drawing. Is she a snob? I doubt it. She just doesn’t give a hell about the political stuff I’m twittering… which frankly I’m not sure why I’m twittering politics either beyond the fact that everyone else is.
I’ve had a rough time with Hugh MacLeod myself. Why does the guy bother with a facebook profile and his own App if he hates facebook. I’ve been thrown off facebook around nine times and I still come back because it is a great interface and I’m pretty sure at this juncture I would say every other network is just as stinky. Gaping Void makes some interesting doodles, but I know many better and I know many worse. His captions don’t strike me as enlightening or witty and he comes across often as self indulgent. I do like his ability to avoid stale politics however and he should be congratulated on not sounding like 99% of twitter, including myself. My guess is it is the interaction that makes his work exciting, but this is the part that is almost impossible to get from him. I suppose why so many people have his App is for a mere taste of his thoughts… which will never come. Outside of the vague captions that could mean anything and thus have a wide audience. I guess that is the “Gaping Void”. Blocked!
Wondering if I am a stereotype or not? Ill have to wait for part 2 I guess