Twitter is a great platform to generate a buzz about anything. More advertising companies are joining in and brands are serving full strength to make sure they capture their targeted markets through promotion on Twitter. But not just the social media marketing gurus are utilizing the platform successfully, but news journalists are also on to it for spreading awareness about different issues taking place around us every day. A recent interesting case happened in Afghanistan where around a million internet users are active using the social media to cover news in their country, according to Mashable.
According to Mustada Kazemi, who is a reporter covering politics and war situation in Afghanistan, almost all of the journalists are using the platform to tweet about minute-to-minute occurrences. They have been using the service since early part of 2011. He tweeted about the suicide attack on the British Council in Kabul in August 2011 and used the micro-blogging service again to tweet pictures of the building where combatants took resort to attack the U.S. Embassy.
Twitter has helped in the growth of citizen journalism as well, because through this tool people have been able to report robberies and cover an entire revolution too. It has helped bringing forward citizens’ perspectives upon issues and make their voice heard ever more strongly. The governments are often in shatters to think about what could such a democratic platform do where everyone is allowed to voice their opinions? But this very expressive platform has gotten some in trouble. The exchange of ideas is limitless, if one uses Twitter properly. Following updates and being aware of every new happening.
With such a localized viewpoint as Kazemi can provide the world about Afghanistan, the foreign journalists are also getting an insight into what Afghans are going through. But in places where web is censored, like in China, and now India has joined in, it is getting a bit difficult to brave one’s way through it. Kazemi is no different to such a situation either. He has received death threats and government censorship of the internet in Afghanistan continues, but Kazemi is hopeful about the part he is playing and thinks that his other fellow-countrymen could also do the same. When there would be so many voices for an issue or against one, then it would be difficult for an entity to ignore them.
[ttjad]
