Twitter: The privacy, the failure and the rudeness

A rather interesting day on Twitter today. Unusual to say the least.

I woke up at 7am and scanned the online news. I came across an article defaming a wonderful person on my follow list. To protect the privacy of this person, I decided not to tweet the article but instead send it to her via direct message as a heads up. She graciously replied back. 

Few hours later, someone else came across the article and decided to tweet it. The storm of retweets followed soon afterwards.

All the tweets were showing support for the concerned person except for one tub-of-lard-chandler-bing-wannabe tweeter.

But I won’t waste any time on him.

In my opinion, it would have been better if the article was not mentioned publicly on Twitter until the concerned person expresses her views on the subject, even if it was with good intentions. The PR in me thought tweeting the article, without an official 'statement', would escalate things and make them worse. That's why, I refrain from tweeting about it or mentioning any names in my post. 


As expected, the storm of tweets are now causing people to speculate. 

But all I have to say to the concerned person is I genuinely hope the defaming article does not cause you any issues. I would like to assure you that you have many fans and supporters behind you and I am sure you will have the last laugh.

Speaking of PR…

Later in the day, yours truly, tweeted the above message which caused quite a stir.

For the past few days I have seen plenty of tweets related to a ‘Twitter Retweet Contest’ campaign by Nahel.com

I am a big supporter of social media campaigns that are executed properly. Wild Peeta, Du and Geek Fest are examples of brilliant social media marketing.

On the other hand, a campaign that asks you to “retweet to win a prize” is nothing but utter spam. I have seen and unfollowed plenty of those spammers over the past two years.

Shockingly (and immaturely, I might add), few of the so-called marketing experts defended the spamming by Nahel.com. Unsurprisingly, they are the same people who organized this disastrous campaign on behalf of Nahel.  

Not only did they not have a logical explanation to their defense but they had the nerves to be rude and insulting to other tweeters who labeled their campaign as a 'failure'.

It is worth mentioning that a lot of people are taking part in this contest to win the prize. Nevertheless, I am confident that once the competition is over, Nahel’s follow list will drop significantly. Like one smart tweeter said, 'there is no brand loyalty'. That's why I agree, the campaign is a failure. 

Social media deserves its own day

After all, we spend endless hours each day on Twitter and Facebook.But it’s not all in vain. We genuinely believe in social media, despite what certain pundits would have you believe. 

Not only do we use social media tools to connect with friends and tweeps, but we also help spread and break the news, support and promote businesses, express opinions, engage in discussions, solve problems, share insights and  change perceptions.

With 400 million Facebook and over 100 million Twitter users, Social media is a force to be reckoned with. And if you choose to ignore it, you will end up at the bottom of the chain. 

In our region, there are 15 million Facebook users and despite being relatively new, Twitter has managed to attract 40,000 users in the Middle East. (Figures by Spot On PR)

Social Media Day (#SMDAY) is set to take place globally on June 30^th. Mashable is taking the lead in creating and organizing the meetups “to celebrate the revolution of media becoming a social dialogue.”

In Lebanon, social media advocates – AKA Maniachi – are taking the lead in organizing the event locally.

You can register here for the event. The venue is yet to be confirmed but the Maniachi team are asking you to suggest the venue. Poll closes in less than 2 days.

If you are in Dubai, you can register for SMDAY here. 

Blogganon

I never knew how thriving blogging is in Lebanon until I stumbled upon Lebanon Aggregator. 

This is actually one of the reasons why I started a personal blog. I do think blogging is taken seriously in this country (much more than the UAE) and I would like to think that it is as influential as traditional media. 

In fact, recent events have proven that bloggers can bring to the table what traditional media couldn’t bring. 

What’s even more interesting is the diversity of Lebanese blogs. We have the poets, the politicians, the cooks, the activists, and many more. 

And Lebanon Aggregator has gathered them all into one site. 

Not only does it offer a list of 100+ Lebanese blogs but it also features a “Not so mini blog-roll”, highlighting the latest entries from each blog.

This is by no mean a plug for Lebanon Aggregator (although I don’t see the harm). As a matter of fact, I have a bone to pick with the site. 

I would have preferred if the blogs were divided into categories. I know it takes a lot of time for the webmaster to categorize every blog, but it takes even more time to go through the 100+ sites to find the ones that cater to people’s interests. 

I tried that! Eventually, and after visiting 20+ blogs, I gave up! I did however find the first 20 or so blogs fascinating. I do plan to check every single one on the list in the coming days.

Nevertheless, kudos to the site for its round-up of Lebanese Blogs. Great effort, undoubtedly; and props to the blogging community and social media advocates across Lebanon and Arabianism land.