Twitter is for the Night Owls

Twitter is for the Night Owls

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        Saturday Night Live alum, Jimmy Fallon, has inherited The Tonight Show from Jay Leno just this year. Fallon has brought over many of the traditions started when he took over the Late Night show after Conan O’Brien. This includes the segment “Hashtags.” This bit is a “prompt and response” where the show sets a hashtag for fans & followers of the show to compose a tweet related to that hashtag.

This not only energizes the groundswell, but is supporting and tapping into the groundswell as well. This is because with thousands of tweets being sent in each week these hashtags become contributions to the show’s content. Fallon also mentions in the segment that the particular hashtag for the week is a “worldwide trending topic,” which is just one more deliverable to add to the list that demonstrates support for the show (and the invitation to participate).   

While most of Fallon's segments are silly, embracing and tapping the groundswell using Twitter helps generate content and also brings awareness to what the people what on another larger media platform. This sheds light on a person's insight to the enviroment, interactions, and products that they valued as a consumer. 

The show pays homage to the Twitter’s use of tags, coined as “hashtags,” as well as the Twitter community. Fallon has made this commentary since 2013 with Justin Timberlake, but it doesn't stop there, and both the commentary and technology's pop culture significance is apparent. 

I would say it’s Twitter’s emphasis on tagging that help it to create and rally a community of people of all backgrounds behind a story, cause, or experience. 

We often mock the overuse and misuse of hashtags, but they are truly a powerful tool. When we look on late night TV they're everywhere and have a big influence on content. 

Tweets Can Hurt

        Jimmy Kimmel has hosted Jimmy Kimmel Live! since 2003. The show has stayed relevant through silly & irreverent “bits.” In 2012 Kimmel started the segment “Celebrities Read Mean Tweet,” which have had 7 sequences and some “music” and “sports” specials.

This is not just funny, but enlightening to the "reach" of the technology. It shows users that the information reaches real people "behind the handle." It also pays homage to the groundswell, even if it’s not in the most flattering light. But again, this is a case of a social media platform that has given people the tools to reach out to others, even of celebrity status. Twitter is highlighted on popular late night shows, like Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the Tonight Show, and therefore gives more publicity and appeal as a technology and service.

Twitter not only has an effective tagging tool, but it acts as a review forum for most. This gives a larger community for common people to voice their opinions on products and performances, and celebrities are not exempt from this. 


Even if they don't have a twitter handle that doesn't stop people from talking about what they want to take about. This is the same situation with the Streisand Effect.

 What’s On TV @midnight?

        The groundswell that exists in Twitter has made it the component of @midnight. It's just not a Twitter handle! Ok, well... it is. But it's also a new show on Comedy Central. It reaches out to its audience/followers through Twitter for responses to the “prompt” posted Monday - Thurday (when the show airs). Again, we see here how the show is generating content for itself by tapping into the groundswell. Not only that, but it's providing some instant gratification.  

Then the show incorporate comedians (often with upcoming performances or something current to promote) with a game show setting. This use of the technology with other pop culture references and figures. 

Celebrities + Twitter = groundswell reflection.

Take Away

        When it comes to Twitter, tagging and reviews make a brand. Celebrities get into the mix and it’s easy to poke fun at the ridiculousness that exists on Twitter (and other social media). But really Twitter has affected pop culture and the entertainment industry. Twitter has proven itself a power tool in generating content and jokes (often at the expense of people or products).