Twitter, is it good?

1. How do media use Twitter for "good?'

• The use of Twitter is good for the media because it allows journalists to break news. By logging on to their Twitter feed, a writer is able to Tweet his/her thoughts on a current topic. Often, the topics are hyper linked to a full story for further reading. Big media chains such as the NY Times and Chicago Tribune use it to entice readers. Enticing the reader makes the reader click the hyper link to view the story, thus creates more traffic and attention on ones website.

2. How do media combat/reach readers who don't know the difference between gossip and genuine reporting?

• The media is able to combat what is gossip and genuine reporting by using sources. The more sources a writer has on a topic, the more credible the story generally is. Readers who don't know the difference between here say and truth need to rely on facts and information from reputable sources. Also, a journalist has ethical issues when writing a story. They won't libel a person because it is ethically wrong and also could have major repercussions on their career.
• One main point of readers is to realize breaking news from news that has had time to marinate and sit. Breaking news is short and to the point. It usually tells what happened and who was involved without much speculation. A story that elaborates on the breaking news, usually has been written a few hours after the event occurred. This would give the journalist ample time to put facts and sources together, in order to elaborate more on the breaking news.
  
• Also, check who is distributing the news. If the news is coming from a well known distributor, then the story is more often genuine. If it comes from a tabloid, then gossip is usually what is written.