Time for another of my irregular (*in more ways than one) posts on the world of communications:
Blue Sky? Are We Doing This Again?
There was a time when it felt like the landscape of social media platforms for communicators would remain stable: Twitter (yes, now X), Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, depending on your audience and needs. New platforms come and go, so seeing a TikTok become hugely popular (and perhaps added to your priorities) should take no one by surprise.
Now, we have, maybe, a disruption – a mass migration to Bluesky from Twitter (X! It’s X!), largely because of dissatisfaction with the direction new Twitter X owner Elon Musk has taken with the platform, and more so in light of the current political environment.
Since the election (and Musk’s attachment to the President-Elect), we have seen a massive number of posts across platforms announcing “I’m leaving X, here is my Bluesky handle; see you there! But is it a true, permanent migration? Certainly not yet. First off, we heard similar things about Threads (owned by Meta, parent company of Instagram and Facebook as well), and while there is a lot of activity on Threads, there has been concern (or perhaps applause from some) that the app is de-emphasizing politics. I have seen a lot of action there in the last year, but it has not sustained in my view, and I have always had questions, particularly about the interface, which is slightly more confusing. One would think that Zuckerberg would be relentless in trying to take over the social media world, but…no. Bluesky, for all the attention it now holds, is still far smaller, but the growth trajectory, as I write this, is quite big, and the number of active users is telling.
For now.
For my part, I am keeping my X account – you never know when you need it for client work, still – but I am trying to be active across all to see which makes the most sense.
Meanwhile, I am “doughaslam” on Bluesky, since some other jerk took “dough,” which is still my handle on Twitter.
On a Side Note:
As a PR pro, I have long used Twitter X to find reporters sourcing stories, where I have found some nice success stories over that time. Lately, I have seen that far more frequently on LinkedIn. A sign of the Twitter X exodus, or am I just noticing it more? It does seem an appropriate platform.
PRxNE
I am fortunate to serve on the board of the Public Relations Society of America’s Northeast District (as well as the Boston Chapter) and had the pleasure of attending the annual district conference, PRxNE, in Syracuse November 15th. There were too many great topics to summarize, but aside from the always-great networking among public relations pros from all over New England and New York State, we were treated to a great keynote from David Sommerstein of North Country Public Radio, delivering a crucial message on the need for local journalism (and how local and national media can work with each other), along with sessions I am still digesting on data, responsible use of artificial intelligence (can’t get away from that, sorry) and what Gen Z is bringing to the table. Next year is in Boston, and you can bet I’m looking forward to that…
*Ok, that’s three. That’ll do.