Twitter, a Tragedy and a Reappraisal
As an unapologetic football fanatic, I have used the word“ tragedy” to describe performances of such stunning ineptitude that have resulted in bruising defeats for my team
I have seen headlines using the word to describe some fashion fiasco perpetrated by someone who is famous, simply for being famous.
Even Brexit is being described as a tragedy in the making, though that may well prove to be more apposite than it at first appears.
All of the above may seem a trifle esoteric, even for this columnist, but bear with me.
I tend to regard Twitter, described by Donald Trump as his“ megaphone to the world”, with the same degree of scepticism that I apply to unsubstantiated contributions to Wikipedia, the online amalgam of fact, fiction and fable.
It’ s true that the demonic, early morning ramblings of POTUS 1 are almost comic in content, although potentially tragic in their consequences, but they do serve to further undermine the perceived value of Twitter as a communication vehicle of any real consequence.
Occasionally, however, that dubious value soars when it brings to light matters which conventional media outlets would regard as being of little or no consequence.
Regular readers of STOM may recollect the harrowing image of the body of young boy being carried from the sea after he perished with most of his family in a vain attempt to reach Europe from North Africa.
That gained widespread coverage. It was on our European doorstep, it was associated with the perceived scourge of illegal immigration and it was, in media terms,“ sexy”.
The image shown below doesn’ t offer the same degree of macabre titillation to the viewer. It doesn’ t even have very great shock value.
The story behind it is, however, appalling and deserves wider coverage than it got.
Anil, 27, was a sewer worker in the capital Delhi, who died when the rope lowering him into a sewer snapped, causing him to fall inside.
1
The acronym for President of The United States
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