1. In defense of eavesdropping:
Twitter as conversation,
not self-indulgence
Presentation for
Theorizing the Web 2013
Shannon Sindorf
PhD student, Journalism and Mass Communication
University of Colorado
@shannonsindorf

2. The “self-indulgence” frame
Participation in social media is often
considered a self-indulgence
Social media are thought of as
performances
Twitter
carries the baggage
of Facebook
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

3. The “conversation” frame
A better frame with which to view
Twitter is to see it as a broad
conversation
года з канвеера Ніжагародскага аўтамабільнага
завода (сышоў першы грузавы аўтамабіль НАЗ-АА[ Überprüfe anschließend
Першыя тры з паловай тысячы машын НАЗ-АА з-за bitte auch die weiteren
недахопу штампавальнага абсталявання былі Beiträge des Benutzers –.
выпушчаныя з драўлянай кабінай. Vandalismusmeldung
bekannt.
Überprüfe anschließend bitte auch die
weiteren Beiträge des Benutzers – wenn
jemand eine. Hört der Benutzer trotz
Ansprache mache den Fall auf der Oes, os wnawn ni gychwyn
Vandalismusmeldung bekannt. sgwennu erthyglau! Mae yna hefyd
gynlluniau gan Wici Cymru i
hyfforddi golygyddion, a bydd
cyhoeddiad am hyn cyn hir.
Oes, os wnawn ni
gychwyn sgwennu
golygyddion, a bydd
cyhoeddiad am hyn
cyn hir.
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

4. Conversation in Democracy
Deliberative democracy theory:
Democracy works primarily not through
formal processes such as voting, but
through the debate and discussion
that precede voting
Twitter can be one venue for
that crucial,
informal deliberation
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

5. What we gain when we see
Twitter as a conversation
Tweeting is not (necessarily) a self-
indulgence, but rather the taking
of one’s turn
The “self-indulgence” frame is
a hindrance to conversation
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

6. Eavesdropping on Twitter
On Twitter, eavesdropping is
invited but
unacknowledged
Eavesdropping is not an
anti-social act, but a
pro-social one
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

7. Good and bad conversation
A “conversation” frame allows us to
distinguish between good and bad
forms of conversation
A lot of online conversation is
very bad conversation
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

8. Meta-conversation
We need to acknowledge and talk
about the fact that we’re in a
conversation if it’s going to be a
productive one
Irony and self-reflexivity are
tools of meta-conversation
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

9. Twitter and scholarship
A conversation is more than a hashtag
Discourse analysis and
critical discourse analysis are great
methods to use to analyze Twitter-as-
conversation
DA and CDA will likely need to be more
autoethnographic—mass media
methods won’t work on Twitter
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf

10. Selected References
Benhabib. S. (2002). The Claims of Culture: Equality and Diversity in the
Global Era. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Mansbridge, J. (2012). Everyday talk in the deliberative system. In
Barker, D. W. M., N. McAfee, & D. W. McIvor (Eds.), Democratizing
Deliberation: Political Theory Anthology. Dayton, OH: Kettering
Foundation Press.
Marwick, A.E. & boyd, d. (2010). I tweet honestly, I tweet passionately:
Twitter users, context collapse, and the imagined audience. New Media
& Society, 13(1), 114-133.
Van Den Eede, Y. (2010). ‘‘Conversation of mankind’’ or ‘‘idle talk’’?: a
pragmatist approach to social networking sites. Ethics of Information
Technology, 12, 195-206.
Shannon Sindorf  In Defense of Eavesdropping  Theorizing the Web 2013  @shannonsindorf