No love for Twitter among teens

Not long ago a group of Green Bay Southwest High School journalism students visited the Green Bay Press-Gazette on a field trip.

During the visit they learned about many elements of journalism — one being the role social media plays in breaking news.

My coworkers were surprised that, when asked, not one of those students said they used Twitter. Instead they use Snapchat and Instagram, and see Twitter as a fading technology.

This does not surprise me one bit.

I am 23 years old and only started to use Twitter once I began my professional career. Before then, Twitter was never on my radar. I can also say the same for my peers — use Facebook far more than they do Twitter.

This week I talked to a group of Southwest students and virtually all of them, too, said they do not use Twitter or rarely use it. These students called Twitter boring and complained that it's hard to follow and interpret conversations on the site.

I also asked readers to share their thoughts about Twitter — their activity and habits (if any), along with their likes and dislikes.

The biggest downfall for most is Twitter's 140 character limit. It seems people, especially those my age, prefer a site that does not limit how they word their thoughts.

Another annoyance is the process of following — or lack thereof. Those who are not particularly fond of the site do not like how you can choose to follow someone but they do not have to follow you back. That one-sidedness leads people to be more personally invested in their Facebook accounts where, to be someone's friend, they have to be yours, too.

Others touched on another aspect of Twitter — entertainment.

One reader put it this way, "Facebook is for following the people you know but wish you didn't and Twitter is for following the people you don't know but wish you did."

Most of the Southwest students I talked to that have Twitter accounts said following favorite celebrities or athletes is a top priority — even above posting their own anecdotes.

Senior Nate Freeman, said following famous people makes the site more interesting than others, along with stumbling across new information before anyone else does.

Younger students, though, said they have no use for the site.

"I don't really see a point in having Twitter. It's boring," freshman Jennifer Peng said.

Freshman Jessica Loch said Twitter conversations are simply too hard to follow.

"It's hard for me. I just give up," she said. "I also prefer Facebook and Instagram where you can show your personality through pictures."

Over time those attitudes may change. Twitter remains a primary social network for professionals and businesses.

Like me, they may come to think of Twitter as just another part of the work toolbox — something you graduate into.

It seems as though a young person first gets a Facebook, then Snapchat, then Instagram and then Twitter rounds out the options as the last step before activating a LinkedIn account.

That progression may be commonplace, but it may not be in the future. A generation that sees Twitter as boring and irrelevant could be hard to win overand could mean potential problems for Twitter as a staple in the world of social media.

—sleduc@greenbay.gannett.com 'Like' Shelby Le Duc on Facebook and follow her on Twitter @pgshelbyleduc and Instagram @shelbyleduc22