Social Media Analysis: Trayvon Martin Case

Social Media is used extensively in the Trayvon Martin Case. Twitter would be updated by the press every so often, and not only that, the public would chime in with their opinions, as well. The allowance of only 140 characters is a main reason why social media is widely used in journalism. Allowing this limit enables the journalist to post a quick tag line that entices the reader to investigate on further reports. For instance, the Twitter feed for #TrayvonMartin was linked to Anderson Cooper’s blog, AC360. When Cooper would tweet about the case, the tweet had links to his blog that would allow a reader to follow the link and read more about the case. 

Fact checking, accuracy, and credibility is a harding thing to do on the Twitter feed. Since the limit on the amount of information shared at one time is enforced, the amount of information is further limited with tweets that link to another website. On the other hand, that link shared is very useful. The website shared with #TrayvonMartin led to Anderson Cooper’s blog, and within Cooper’s bog was more links to other reputable sources that added to the credibility of that single Tweet about an update on the Trayvon Martin case. 

The message of the Trayvon Martin case on Twitter is conveyed to be a popular and interesting one because of the frequent updates and multiple links to other websites. The frequent updates did not necessarily reflect on the journalists’ updates; in fact, it was the obvious response to the journalists’ articles that created a buzz on Twitter. Twitter thus was and has become a necessary tool in the journalism industry. The story was presented in different ways by the varying online counterparts. 

The presence of Citizen journalism is a major one in regards to the Trayvon Martin case because the story itself created a lot questions regarding racism and ethics. Since the case involved a possible hate crime on a young African American, the majority of citizen’s reporting on Twitter were African American. Biases and personal beliefs were heavily prevalent in reading about the case. It would be hard for the audience to decipher what is part of the case and part of the citizen’s personal beliefs. Even though it is a part of free speech, the responsibility is placed on the reader on whether or not they will believe the reports about Trayvon Martin.