News on the Tweet

1) The combination of newsbrands and Twitter helps keep us informed and opinionated. Each helps the other to grow its audiences and influence.Twitter therefore becomes more popular and used when users go on the social networking site to look at news pages as these are always kept up to date. Twitter users stated that newsbrands on Twitter helps them to 'to be aware of what is going on in the world, to pass the time and to be connected to people I am interested in but don't know.'

2) In turn, Twitter is good for newsbrands because by users following news companies on Twitter, they gain more followers and publicity. The newsbrands then have a larger audience interested in them and it can therefore boost their subscribers. Statistics show that 40% of users check Twitter frequently to see what is going on with their favourite newspaper brand.

3) The report suggests that old and new media 'are not, in fact, in direct competition, but often work extremely well together to enhance both the media eco-system and the consumer experience.' According to the report, enhancements take place in four different ways. These include: knowledge, opinion, gossip and banter and community. I do agree with this as I feel both Twitter and newsbrands work together in order to benefit one another.

4) Besides serious news, there is also gossip and banter of celebrities, political scandals, sports etc all for entertainment purposes. Examples of tweets from journalists include:

• 'Neil Ashton @neilashton • Nov 5 Arsenal are toast: In all seriousness now, what are the sales figures like for this kind of stuff?'

• 'Camilla Long @camillalong • Feb 16 Favourite story all weekend has been Del Boy killing the British sheepskin coat industry. LOL'

• 'Lucy Tobin @lucytobin • Feb 17 Excellent: a University has spent £20,000 building a mock pub for students to investigate why people get drunk.'

• 'Caitlin Moran @caitlinmoran • Jan 11 The most amazing thing about the story of President Hollande having an affair is that he apparently only has one pair of shoes.'

5) In my opinion, I believe that the increasing amount of gossip and banter is not actually harming the reputation of news and journalists. Instead, it enhances them as 'jokes' and 'funny quotes' are more likely to be shared and re-tweeted, gaining more publicity. However, I do believe it is important on which journalist or newsbrand does this as people who are taken very seriously would not be likely to post and gossip or banter on Twitter and that in turn could damage their reputation as they may then be seen as unprofessional.

6) The report suggests that trust in Twitter has actually been enhanced due to journalists. Statistics show that 39% of users felt that 'journalists on Twitter are a trustworthy and faster source of news, 48% said I feel I have a more personal connection with journalists I follow and 69% stated Twitter gives me access to journalists I wouldn't otherwise connect with.' The users on Twitter therefore increase due to the public finding journalists to be trustworthy. However it also increases journalist profiles as more Twitter users have access to them through the social networking site.

7) In my opinion, I believe that new and digital media developments such as Twitter have had a positive impact on traditional newspapers to a certain extent. Whilst the social networking site has allowed users to have greater access to newsbrands and increased their profile of subscribers and followers, it could be argued that this also encourages the decline of traditional newspapers. This is because people are less likely to buy print newspapers and pay money for them as they can easily access the news through search engines on the internet and social sites such as Twitter. It can be seen as more convenient as people gain quick access to the internet through computers, tablets and smartphones wherever they are, as oppose to going to the shop to buy a traditional print newspaper.