After following my columns on Tweetdeck for a few days, I have come to several conclusions. Quality of information varied between the columns that I followed. Most columns were informative. A few, however, were useless, amounting to nothing more than random thoughts. Museum columns tended to be more academic in nature, providing the reader with facts and figures on specific objects on display at the museum. Columns that followed specific individuals advanced ideas and concepts that they supported. In short, each column had its own unique personality.
The museum columns that I followed were the most useful. The Field Museum column, for example, provided me with a wealth of information. Engagement packages for couples offered at the museum were advertised. A person can propose to his bride at the Grainger Hall of Gems, one of the many exhibits at the Field Museum, for a set fee. The rare Emperor of India Butterfly was publicized in another Tweetdeck post, offering the reader a glimpse at this beautiful butterfly temporarily on display. Like the Field Museum, the Museum of Science and Industry column offered some valuable information. One post offered free coupons to the museum, while another commemorated 40 years of African American creativity within the sciences. The Museum of Science and Industry column even posted a description of a job available at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. To be fair, not every museum column Tweetdeck post was relevant. Some useless declarative statements like “mammals and whales, just a day at the Field Museum” did appear. This, however, was an anomaly. The majority of information presented within the museum columns did serve a purpose.
Tweetdeck columns on particular academics proved to be valuable, too. Eddie Glaude, Department Chair of African American Studies at Princeton University, column illustrates this point. A link to Glaude’s “Pragmatic Reconstructions: The Prophetic, The Heroic and the Democratic” lecture series is provided within the column. Through this lecture series, Glaude’s ideas on Democracy, civic engagement and America’s political system are brought into focus. Further, a review on Glaude’s keynote speech on the meaning of Martin Luther King’s legacy to America is addressed. More to the point, Glaude’s column laid out his political and ideological beliefs succinctly.
The majority of columns that I tracked were wonderful. Each time I scrolled down a column I learned something new. Whether it was being exposed to a new interpretation of Martin Luther King’s legacy or stumbling upon a coupon offering free admittance into the Museum of Science and Industry, I found reading the columns refreshing and worthwhile.
